Where Are You?
by Knope.We.Can
Summary: Beca Mitchell has been missing from Barden for a month. Chloe has spent every single hour she's been gone missing her. Bechloe multi-chapter fic. Rated T for language.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hello you lovely motherflippers! **

**Here's the latest multi-chapter fic from yours truly. I'll update as often as I can but real life often gets in the way.**

**Also, please follow me on tumblr and message me and say hello! ****massivedrickhead . tumblr . com**

**I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters**

* * *

**"It's been one month since eighteen-year-old student Beca Mitchell went missing from the Barden University campus. Police are urging anyone who may know anything to contact them-"**

Chloe shut off the TV. The picture of Beca they'd shown still burned in her mind. God she missed her. Every hour that passed without news brought on a new wave of misery and loss. Every hour that passed made it less and less likely that she'd be found safe and well.

She picked up her phone, ignoring the missed call from Aubrey, and clicked on her text messages. She scrolled down and re-read the last ones she'd gotten from Beca.

**Beca: I'm on my way you loser. Quit texting me, it's making you seem desperate xx**

**Chloe: You love it when I'm desperate. Just hurry up will you? I need to talk to you about something xx**

**Beca: Sounds serious. I'll be there soon, Red. xx**

"Chlo'?" Aubrey said as she walked into the apartment. "Okay?"

"Yep," Chloe said, wiping her eyes. "Sorry I missed rehearsal again."

"Hey, it's okay," Aubrey said, sitting beside her friend on the sofa. "To be honest, we haven't been doing much rehearsing the past month. We mostly just sit about. No one really feels like it. The girls miss you though." Chloe nodded, still staring at Beca's name on her phone.

"Why haven't they found her yet, 'Bree?" Chloe said, her voice breaking again.

"I don't know," Aubrey said, pulling her into a hug.

It had been a month and the only lead they had was that Beca's headphones had been found on the side of the road that lead away from Barden. A week ago Aubrey had overheard the police saying they were changing their search areas to focus on the woods near Barden and the lake. Places where Beca's body might be. Aubrey hadn't told Chloe this yet.

"I miss her so much," she said, resting her head on Aubrey's shoulder.

"I know you do sweetie," Aubrey said. It's true she had borderline hated the tiny brunette when they first met but after Beca had brought them to victory in the ICCA finals, she had grown to like and care about her. "Are you hungry?"

"No," Chloe replied. "I think I'm just gonna go to bed."

"Chlo', you have to eat," Aubrey said.

"I'm not hungry," Chloe said, standing. "Night."

"Chloe, it's been a month," Aubrey said, bracing herself slightly. "You can't just stop living while you wait for her to come home."

"You make it sound like she's just off on holiday or something," Chloe said. "I'm not waiting for her to _come_ home I'm waiting for her to be _found_ and _brought_ home."

"But you still need to look after yourself," Aubrey said, sensing the anger radiating from her friend. Anger that she knew wasn't really directed at her but anger that she still didn't want to be on the receiving end of. "You have to carry on."

"No, actually, I don't," Chloe said, her voice hollow now.

"Chloe..."

"I'm going to bed."

Aubrey closed her eyes as the slam of Chloe's bedroom door echoed throughout the apartment. Soon she'd go and comfort her. For now, however, she just let the tears fall.

* * *

Beca was running. Running harder than she'd ever ran in her life. Her bare, bloodied feet pounded against ground. Her lungs were screaming for her to stop but she wouldn't. She couldn't. She had to get away. Had to get out of these woods and towards civilisation and safety.

Her foot caught on a branch and she came crashing down, slamming into the ground. She tried to push herself up but didn't have the strength in her arms.

She was too tired, too hungry and in too much pain.

The sound of approaching footsteps forced her into movement. She began crawling. Pulling herself along the rock strewn ground, tears streaming down her face as they cut into her arms and legs. A pair of hands turned her over.

"Beca? Beca Mitchell?"

* * *

Aubrey knocked on Chloe's bedroom door before pushing it open. Chloe was curled up in bed, staring at her phone, her face lit up from the screen.

"Chlo'," she said sitting on the edge of the bed. "I'm sorry."

"What for?" Chloe asked, not bothering to wipe the tears from her cheeks.

"I didn't realise before... You love her, right?" Aubrey asked. Chloe was silent for a few seconds.

"Yes," Chloe said, quietly. "I was going to tell her the night she disappeared."

Chloe's phone began ringing. "It's her dad," Chloe said, sitting up. Her heart began pounding in her chest and her mouth went dry. "'Bree, what if they've found her? What if... What if she's... I can't answer it."

"Give it here," Aubrey said, sounding a lot calmer than she felt. "Chloe Beale's phone. It's Aubrey. Oh my god," she said, her hand flying to her mouth. "Oh my god, okay. Okay, we're on our way now." Aubrey hung up. "Chloe, they found her. They've taken her to Barden Hospital."

"She's alive?" Chloe asked.

"She's alive."


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thank you thank you thank you so much for the amazing response I got for that last chapter! **

**Here is the latest :)**

**(Also, we will update We Could Be More as soon as we can)**

**I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters**

* * *

"Why can't we see her?" Chloe said, pacing the hospital corridor.

"Just be patient, Chlo'," Aubrey said, sitting very still in the chair, her clasped hands resting on her knees. "They have to run tests." Her voice caught in her throat slightly. She was studying to be a lawyer, specialising in representing women who had been assaulted. She had a good idea of what kind of tests they were currently running on Beca and the thought made her feel sick.

Beca sat silently as they prodded, poked and took swabs and samples from everywhere possible. They kept asking her questions but she didn't respond. She simply stared ahead of her, not really seeing anything.

"Where is she?" Jesse said, rushing into the corridor. He was out of breath and dishevelled, sporting a black eye.

"What the hell happened to you?" Aubrey asked.

"I was at a bar last night and overheard some guys making jokes about Beca's disappearance. So I hit them," he said, scowling. "Where is she?"

"In there," Chloe said, gesturing at the door in front of them. "They're doing tests."

"What kind of tests?" He said, taking up the pacing now Chloe had sat down.

"Use your head, Jesse," Aubrey snapped. "She turns up running through the woods, covered in blood and bruises with hardly any clothes on. What kind of tests do you _think_ they're running?" Chloe let out a sob beside her, burying her face in her hands. A nurse came out of the room, followed by Beca's dad who stormed past them all and out of the corridor.

"He just needs some air," she said in response to their confused looks. "You can see her now, but please take it easy with her. She is very likely traumatised by whatever happened. She hasn't spoken to anyone yet, not even her dad."

"So... So do we know what happened to her?" Aubrey asked.

"We can't know for sure until Beca actually speaks to us, but from her injuries we can make... assumptions," she said, choosing her words carefully.

"What kind of assumptions?" Jesse asked.

"The bruises on her wrists and ankles suggest that wherever she was, she was tied up. She also has bruising on her face and ribs which indicates that she's been beaten. When she was brought in she was dehydrated and it seems she hasn't had a decent meal the entire time she's been missing. She also has bruises on her thighs which could mean any number of things but... But the most likely would be sexual assault, or even attempted sexual assault," the nurse finished sadly. "We won't know for certain until we receive the results of the tests we and the police carried out."

"I can't believe someone did this," Chloe said, feeling sick to her stomach.

"I know," Aubrey said, "but we have to be strong for her."

Chloe nodded before she stood from her chair and took a steadying breath before she moved towards the room.

Jesse beat her to it. He was in the room and had her pulled into a hug before Chloe had even gotten through the door. A second later and Beca had started pulling away from him and panicking. He withdrew quickly, backing away. Beca's hands were in her hair, gripping and pulling at it as she gasped to get her breath back. The nurses began attempting to calm her down. Chloe suppressed every urge she had to rush over to her. She channelled her frustration into reprimanding Jesse.

"What the hell, Jesse? We were told to take it easy," she said.

"You aren't the only one who's missed her Chloe," he spat back. "Why is she scared of me, anyway?"

"Because she's been fucking kidnapped, you idiot!" Aubrey said, rounding on him.

"Enough!" A nurse said. "This isn't helping. Jesse, is it?" She asked turning to him. He nodded. "Okay, Jesse, we're going to need you to step outside." He opened his mouth to argue but she cut him off. "She is obviously uncomfortable around men at the moment. So why don't you come back when she's calmed down?"

While the nurse was easing Jesse out of the room, Chloe's eyes had fallen on Beca and her eyes raked across the injuries that the nurse had described. She was also smaller, paler and thinner than Chloe had ever seen her.

"Hey," Chloe said softly, cautiously approaching her. Beca shifted away slightly, still afraid. "It's me," she said, moving closer. "It's Chloe, I won't hurt you." She held out her hand, waiting for Beca to make the first move. Eventually, Beca reached out and tentatively took Chloe's hand, squeezing it tightly. Chloe saw her knuckles were bruised. "I've missed you so much," she said softly. Beca looked like she wanted to speak. She kept swallowing and opening her mouth before closing it, looking frustrated, blinking back tears. "It's okay," Chloe said, sweeping a tear from her bruised cheek. "You don't have to say anything." They could hear Jesse arguing outside of the room, trying to get in to see Beca and Chloe felt her tense up again. "Come here," Chloe said, opening her arms. Beca didn't hesitate in wrapping her arms around the redhead, burying her head into her chest and gripping her shirt. Chloe gripped her tightly back, closing her eyes as she rested her head on top of Beca's. As her hand moved down Beca's side she could feel her ribs protruding through her skin. "I'm so sorry this happened to you." She placed a cautious kiss on top of her head. Beca started crying, clutching Chloe tighter. "You're okay. I've got you," Chloe said softly, tears making tracks down her own face. "You're safe."

_I don't feel safe_, Beca thought.

"Beca!" Jesse shouted as he forced his way into the room. "They won't let me in, will you tell them it's okay?" Beca froze in Chloe's arms before slowly extracting herself. She opened her mouth but, again, nothing came out. She looked frantically back to Chloe, her hands shaking again. "Beca! Say something!" Beca's hands were gripping her hair again and her eyes were closed as she tried to force herself to take deep breaths. "Fucking say something!"

"Jesse!" Aubrey yelled at him from Beca's other side. "What's your problem?"

"It's okay Becs," Chloe said softly. "Don't worry if you can't speak, it doesn't matter. Just breathe, okay?" She put her hands on top of Beca's so she would stop pulling at her hair and rested their foreheads together. She kept talking to her in a soft tone while Jesse and Aubrey argued. Eventually, Beca calmed down.

"Beca?!"

"Do you want him to go? Just nod or shake your head," she said in an even quieter voice. Beca nodded her head. "Okay." She turned to face Jesse. "Jess, can you just leave it? Just use your head and think about what she's been through." His expression softened slightly.

"Sorry," he said. "Sorry, Beca. I'll come and see you later." As he left, Beca let out a sigh of relief and lay back against the bed.

"Better?" Chloe asked. She nodded and smiled slightly, taking Chloe's hand and squeezing it.

"We should go too, Chlo'," Aubrey said. "Let her get some rest." Beca's hand instantly tightened around Chloe's.

"Do you want us to stay?" Chloe asked, glancing at Aubrey. Beca nodded. "Okay. We'll stay," she said, smiling at her and squeezing her hand back.

It wasn't long until Beca had fallen asleep. Her dad had briefly come back to check on her before returning home.

"Why do you think she can't speak?" Chloe asked Aubrey as she played with the tiny DJ's hair.

"I don't know," Aubrey said. "Some kind of psychological reason? Maybe she's scared that if she talks she'll say the name of whoever took her. Or maybe if she talks they'll ask her to recount what happened, and she's probably not ready to do that."

"Why would she protect him?"

"In case he comes back? I don't know, Chlo'. It's just a theory," Aubrey said, reaching across so her thumbs could brush across the bruises that wrapped around her wrist.

"If I ever find out who did this, I'll kill them," Chloe said.

"You and me both," Aubrey said.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Sorry for the delay and sorry it's a short chapter this time, but we have drama coming in the next couple of chapters!**

**Thank you for the response so far, you're all excellent people :)**

**I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters**

* * *

"Miss Beale, can I have a word?" The nurse said the next morning as she brought in Beca's tiny breakfast.

"Sure," Chloe said, stretching as she stood, hearing her back crack. "Why is her breakfast so small?" she said once they were out of the room.

"Because she's been basically starved for a month, her stomach can only handle small portions. Anything larger will make her sick," the nurse said. "I wanted to talk to you because Beca's being discharged this afternoon."

"Already?" Chloe asked, shocked.

"Medically, she's fine. We've offered her counselling which, to be honest, she's going to really need considering what happened. But until she actually starts speaking, it won't be much use to her. Now she's going to need to be discharged into the care of someone and, considering you're the only person she's really communicated with, we think she'd be better off with you."

"Of course she can stay with me," Chloe said. "But what about her dad?" The nurse looked slightly uncomfortable.

"He has made it clear he wouldn't be able to provide the care she needs," she said. Chloe sighed. "I gather they don't have the strongest relationship?"

"No," Chloe replied, running a hand through her hair. "They were always at each other's throats before this." The nurse gave her a sad smile before allowing Chloe back into the room. "Hey," she said, smiling at Beca and Aubrey. "They're letting you out today and you're coming back with me and Aubrey." Beca made a face that implied she'd liked to disagree. "But luckily you aren't speaking, so you can't argue." Beca gave a reluctant smile. "Don't worry, you aren't causing us any trouble or inconvienience or anything like that. You'll even have your own room." Beca looked to Aubrey for confirmation that she wouldn't be putting them out.

"Beca, if you think we're letting you go back to your dorm after this happened, you're crazy. Let us help you, okay?" Aubrey said. Beca nodded and smiled.

A few hours later and Chloe was driving Beca back to her apartment. Aubrey had gone ahead to get some of Beca's stuff and would be meeting them there.

Once they'd arrived, Beca showered and Aubrey and Chloe set up the spare room for her.

That night, Chloe was woken up by the sounds of screams coming from Beca's room. She ran into the room and saw Beca tangled in her sheets, struggling against an unseen force.

"Beca," Chloe said, climbing onto the bed and cautiously placing her hand on the girl's arm. "Becs, it's just a dream." Beca woke up, shaking and covered in a cold sweat. She pulled her knees into her chest and folded her arms on top of them, hiding her face in her arms. Before bed she had changed into a pair of shorts and a t-shirt and all the bruises and injuries to her legs that had been previously hidden stood out in sharp contrast against her pale skin. Once she had calmed down she lay back against the bed, her eyes red from crying. Chloe could see she was desperate to communicate but still couldn't bring herself to speak.

Chloe had an idea.

She flicked on the bedside lamp and reached into one of the drawers, pulling out a notebook and a pen.

"I know you can't speak, but maybe you could try writing it down?" Chloe said, handing her the paper. Beca held it, her hands shaking slightly as she tried to work up the courage to write something. "You don't have to tell me what happened. Just... Just something. Tell me how you're feeling." After a few seconds of silence and stillness, Beca finally wrote a word on the paper.

_Scared._

She handed the pen to Chloe who wrote her response.

_Of him? Of him coming back?_

_No._ Beca wrote before crossing it out. _Yes._ She crossed that out too, looking frustrated at herself. _Scared he'll hurt you._

Chloe's breath caught in her throat slightly as she wrote her response.

_Why would he hurt me?_

_Because he told me he would. If I ever told anyone._ Beca wrote, her hand shaking worse than ever.

"The only way to stop him hurting anyone, is to let the police know who did it."

_They'll find out. He left his DNA when he ra_ she started frantically scribbling out the last sentence. _I can't turn him in. I won't put you at risk._

"Beca, it's okay," Chloe said, sensing the brunette beside her was about to have another panic attack. "I'll destroy this as soon as we're done, okay? No one will ever read it." Beca nodded but still didn't seem any calmer. "Do you want to stop?" She nodded again. "Okay." She took the piece of paper from the notebook and ripped it into strips and then into even smaller pieces before throwing it into the bin. Chloe returned to sitting on the bed just long enough to kiss Beca on the head. Beca's hand suddenly closed around her wrist. "Becs?" Her breathing had increased and her hands shook so much she could barely write.

_You'll destroy this when I'm done, right?_

"Of course," Chloe responded.

_Promise._

"I promise."

With a shaking hand, Beca wrote down five letters. It was a name. A man's name.

"Did... did he... was it him?" Chloe asked, suddenly feeling lightheaded and beyond furious at the revelation.

_Yes._


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters**

* * *

**Beca: I'm on my way you loser. Quit texting me, it's making you seem desperate xx**

_**Beca smiled at the text on her phone before she hit send. She tightened the laces of her boots before pulling on a jacket. Her phone buzzed in her pocket.**_

**Chloe: You love it when I'm desperate. Just hurry up will you? I need to talk to you about something xx**

_**Something seemed to shift inside her. There was a nervous flutter in her stomach. Her thumbs hovered over the keyboard before she tapped out her response.**_

**Beca: Sounds serious. I'll be there soon, Red. xx**

_**She shoved her phone in her pocket and pulled on her headphones before leaving her dorm to make the short journey to Chloe and Aubrey's.**_

_**She was in the street for approximately 30 seconds before it started to rain.**_

_**"Fucking terrific," Beca muttered, pushing her hands further into her pockets and braced herself against the cold. A car beeped its horn at her and she looked up.**_

_**Jesse was pulling along side her, rolling his window down.**_

_**"Want a ride, Mitchell?" He said, leaning out.**_

_**"I'm good Jesse," Beca replied, still walking. "I'm just going to Chloe's."**_

_**"Come on Beca," he said, his car keeping pace with her. "It's pouring down and it's freezing. I'll even take you to Starbucks first so you can pick up some coffee."**_

_**"Fine," she said, sighing in resignation. He pulled over and she climbed into the passenger seat. "Thanks."**_

_**"No worries," he said, pulling away.**_

_**"Damn," she muttered.**_

_**"What is it?" Jesse said, glancing across.**_

_**"My phone died," she said. "Just drop me straight at Chloe's, Jesse. Forget about the coffee."**_

_**"It'll just take two minutes, Becs," he said, a hint of irritation in his voice. He drove past Chloe's place.**_

_**"Jesse!" Beca said, turning around in her seat, watching the apartment block shrink into the distance. "Dude, I don't want coffee just turn back."**_

_**"Jesus, just come and get some coffee with me," he said, annoyed.**_

_**"I have plans," she said, suddenly feeling uneasy.**_

_**"Oh so you're more than happy to use me for a ride to your fucking girlfriend's place but as soon as I want to spend some time with you, you don't want to know," he said, gripping the steering wheel.**_

_**"Jess, that's not fair. You offered, and... And she's not my girlfriend."**_

_**"You want her to be though, right?" He said, shooting her a filthy look.**_

_**"Why does that matter?" She said, as he sped past the row of shops and cafes. Starbuck's flashed by in a second. "Jesse, where are you taking me?" Her voice was quieter than she'd intended.**_

_**"Just for a drive," he said.**_

_**"Let me out," she said.**_

_**"Why?" He said as they reached the road that took them away from Barden. "Are you scared of me or something?"**_

_**"Just stop the fucking car," she said, feeling the fear creep up inside her.**_

_**"Fine," he said, breaking hard. "Fucking walk home."**_

_**"Fuck you," she said, opening the car door and walking as quick as she could away from the car. It was still raining hard and she didn't hear his footsteps behind her.**_

_**"I'm sorry," he said. His voice had softened considerably. "Sorry for being a dick. I just had a bad day, that's all. Let me take you back."**_

_**"I'm fine walking," she said, not turning around.**_

_**"You can drive," he said, holding out his keys. She hesitated. She was miles from home now and Chloe was probably worrying.**_

_**"Can I call Chloe and let her know I'm okay?" She asked.**_

_**"Sure," he said. "As soon as we're back in the car."**_

_**Something told Beca to walk away. To turn and run.**_

_**But it was cold. It was raining. And she wanted to see Chloe.**_

_**"Okay," she said, taking the keys from him. He smiled at her. As soon as she placed her hand on the car door, he grabbed her by the back of the neck and slammed her head into the side of the car before dropping her onto the road. Blood began spilling down the side of her face. She let out a small whimper as he crouched beside her. He picked the keys up from the road and put them in his pocket. Then he took her phone.**_

_**"I don't like being messed about Beca," he said. Her vision began swimming. "I don't like being played."**_

_**"Jesse..."**_

_**"Don't worry," he said, smiling. "We're going to be really happy together." He scooped her up from the road, her headphones slipping from her neck and bouncing off into the darkness. He threw her into the trunk of his car and she passed out before he slammed it shut.**_

* * *

Beca's hand was aching from the amount she'd written. Her face was set and determined, tears had made tracks down her cheeks.

"Fucking hell," Chloe said as Beca put the pen down. "I'm not letting him get away with this." Beca's eyes shot up. She desperately tried to form words, before giving up and frantically scribbling onto the notebook.

_You promised._

"I'm not letting you protect him," she said, wiping the tears from her cheeks. "What if the police find no evidence against him? Are you just going to let him walk free?"

_I'm not protecting him, I'm protecting you_. She wrote back. When Chloe still didn't look convinced, Beca took the pages of paper that were filled with her shakily written words and began ripping them up into smaller and smaller pieces until not a single word was ledgible.

"Please don't let him get away with this," Chloe said. Beca looked down at her bruised arms and legs. She knew Chloe was right. Of course Chloe was right. But then she remembered what he'd said to her as she sat, terrified in that hospital bed.

**"We're going to let your friends come in now, okay?" The nurse said to her. "Chloe and Aubrey," Beca's face lit up, "and Jesse." And then it fell. Before she could make any kind of protest, the door flew open and Jesse stormed towards her, the black eye she'd given him doing nothing to hide the menace in his eyes. He threw his arms around her and brought his lips close to her ear.**

**"Say a single word, and I'll kill Chloe. Got it?"**

Beca looked at the silently crying redhead beside her. She couldn't let him do anything to her. But then, the only way she'd be safe would be if he was behind bars.

_I don't know what to do._ She wrote, before allowing herself to be folded into Chloe's arms.

"You don't have to do anything," she said. "I'll take care of it all."

* * *

**A/N: So pretty much all of you guessed it! You clever clogs :P**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Time again for me to shower you all with love for reading/reviewing/following/favouriting. You're the best :)**

**I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters.**

* * *

_**"Wakey wakey Beca," Jesse said, slapping Beca awake. She opened her eyes slowly as Jesse swam into focus. She tried to move away from him but found that her hands were tied to the bed post above her head and her ankles tied as well.**_

_**"Jesse, what the fuck?" She said, pulling against the rope. "Let me go."**_

_**"You're smarter than that, Beca," he said. "Why bother wasting your time asking me crap like that? You're mine now, I'm not about to just untie you and let you go, am I?"**_

_**"You're a fucking psycho!"**_

_**He hit her hard across the face.**_

_**"Always got something to say, haven't you?" He said. "This will all be a lot nicer for you, if you just shut your fucking mouth."**_

A knock on the bedroom door brought Beca out of her thoughts. She was sat on the edge of the bed, her hair still damp from the shower. Whoever had knocked turned the handle and came in.

She felt her heart stop.

It was him. And she couldn't do anything. She couldn't move. She couldn't breath. She couldn't shout for help. She couldn't even scream. She just squeezed her eyes shut and waited for the inevitable.

"Beca?" It was Chloe's voice. Her eyes opened. Jesse was gone and Chloe was there instead. Beca let out a shaky couple of breaths as tears sprung to her eyes. "You thought I was him, didn't you?" Beca nodded. She could see the indecisvness in Chloe. She knew Chloe wanted to comfort her, but Beca could also see that she was holding herself back, unsure if that's what she should do. Beca wanted to tell her that that would be the right thing to do. That she desperately needed her. But her voice was still stuck in her throat. The words she needed to say wouldn't come.

She looked at Chloe with desperation in her eyes and Chloe responded in the only way she knew how. She sat beside Beca on the bed and pulled her into a hug.

"I won't let him hurt you," Chloe said. "I promise." Her voice was barely a whisper that tickled Beca's neck. She felt something stiring inside her but she pushed it from her mind. She didn't have room for those thoughts right now. She didn't have the energy to sort through them and figure out what they meant. "I have a lecture soon, so I'm going to have to go, okay?" Chloe said, ending their hug. "But the doors will be locked and I'll only be gone for an hour." Beca nodded, trying to supress the nervousness and fear that rose inside her. "I would totally skip it if I could but it's the last one before the test." Beca squeezed her hand, letting her know she'd be okay.

For the first fifteen minutes of Chloe's absence, Beca tried to leave the bedroom. She couldn't bring herself to even open the door, just in case he was on the other side.

* * *

Chloe hurried out of the lecture hall towards the coffee place on campus. She wanted to pick up Beca's favourite before going back there. Before she reached it she heard someone call her name. It was Jesse.

"Chloe!" He called again, waving and smiling. She turned and gave him a half hearted wave before changing direction and heading in the direction of her apartment. "Wait up!"

"I'm in a hurry, sorry Jesse!" She said, speeding up. He broke into a jog and easily caught up with her.

"I've just been to the hospital and they said they discharged Beca into your care," he said.

"That's right," Chloe said. She wanted to hit him and shout at him and let everyone know what he'd done. But she'd told Beca she'd be careful so she contented herself by picturing herself causing him the kind of pain he deserved.

"Why are you looking at me like I just kicked a puppy?" He asked with a nervous laugh. She softened her features.

"Sorry," she said. "I'm just thinking about the guy who did this to her. If I ever find out who that is, I'll destroy him."

"Me too," he said, scratching the back of his head. "So I take it she still hasn't said anything?"

"Not a word," Chloe said. "But I'm sure it won't be long until the police find out who did it. I'll bet that prick left his DNA all over her." They reached her front door.

"Yeah," he said. "Look, can I come in and see her?"

"It's not a good time, Jesse," she said. "She still isn't ready for visitors."

"Come on Chloe," he said moving towards the door. "It's not like I'm some stranger, I mean we're like best friends."

"She doesn't want to see you," Chloe said, turning her back on him and opening the door.

"Why don't we let her be the judge of that," he said, pushing her out of the way before she could close it on him.

"Jesse!" She shouted after him. He walked into her living room, Chloe close behind him. "Get out."

"Why? Why are you trying to keep her here?" He said. "Want her all for yourself do you?"

"You need to leave right now before I call the police," she said.

"And say what?" He scoffed.

"And say that the man who held Beca prisoner for a month has forced his way into my home," she said, without thinking. She saw him visably pale.

"What?"

"You heard me," Chloe said, her voice shaking slightly. "I know it was you."

"Bullshit," he said. "You think I did that to her?"

"I know you did that to her," she said.

"She tell you this did she?" He said, angry now. "Did she fucking mime it or something? Learn sign language and tell you did she? No, she didn't tell you anything because she hasn't said a fucking word since it happened. Not even to her precious Chloe. You're just trying to pin this on me so I'm out of the picture and then you can make your move."

"Are you fucking serious right now?" Chloe asked, her own voice raised. "You think I would stoop that low?"

"I know you fancy her," he said.

"And I know what you did, Jesse. You aren't going to hurt her again," she said, sounding braver than she felt. He laughed at her.

"Are you going to stop me?" He approached her, backing her against a wall. "If I did kidnap Beca, then a stupid, weak, dyke like you won't stop me from getting her back." He lowered his voice. "You've no idea what I'm capable of Chloe, so I suggest you tread lightly."

"Fuck you," she said, her voice shaking. He put his hand over her mouth and slammed her against the wall.

"What's stopping me from killing you now and taking her back? Nothing," he said, taking a small knife from his pocket and pressing it against her stomach.

He was so absorbed in what he was doing he didn't hear the footsteps behind him. He didn't hear them coming, but he certainly felt it when the baseball bat was slammed into his back. He instantly let Chloe go before he was hit again. He scrambled to his feet and turned to see Beca standing there, a bat in her hand. She raised it to hit him again but he was out of the door in seconds. Beca let the bat fall from her hands with a clatter.

"Beca..."

"Are you okay?" Beca asked. The words slipped from her mouth with ease, despite sounding slightly croaky. There was a small amount of blood on Chloe's shirt. She had gotten a knick with the knife when Jesse had been hit by Beca.

"Yeah," Chloe said, still in shock. "Thank you."

"I thought... I thought he was going to..." Beca said, stammering and panicking as the words seemed to be drying up again.

"Look at me," Chloe said. "I'm okay. Just breathe, the words will come back." Beca nodded, closing her eyes as she took a few calming breaths.

"Sorry," she said. "And sorry about getting you hurt." She gestured to the cut on Chloe's stomach.

"You just saved my life Beca. Don't apologise for anything."


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Thank you for your patience and continued support! :)**

**I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters**

* * *

"Does she really have to go through all this again?" Chloe said, pacing in her living room. The detective in charge of Beca's case was sitting across from the tiny brunette, his tape recorder sitting in the middle of the coffee table, waiting to hear Beca's story. "She wrote it down for you, isn't that enough?"

"If we had more evidence, it would be, but she needs to say it, either through the tape-recorder, or in court. I assume she'll find doing it this way more preferable," he said.

"How can you not have enough evidence?" Chloe said, still furious.

"All we have is evidence that the two had sex," he said, looking uncomfortable. "There is nothing to say it wasn't consensual."

"And her bruises?"

"Again, we have no evidence to say that Jesse did that," he said. "Look, I really am sorry, Miss Mitchell, but if you want Jesse put behind bars, then you need to tell me what happened."

"If you even find him," Chloe said.

"We will find him, I can assure you."

"It's... It's okay, Chloe," Beca said, speaking up finally. "Let's just get this over with."

It took hours for Beca to get the whole story out. She had to stop several times. There were long pauses between sentences while Beca tried to summon the words from somewhere. She spoke of how he had kept her almost constantly tied to the bed, using her for sex whenever he felt like it. Every so often he would untie her, so she could walk about the room she was in, but he would never take his eyes off her for a second. He would hit her whenever she spoke out against him and refuse to feed her, only giving her enough to keep her alive. He would leave her in the remote cabin in the woods for days at a time while he went into college and work to avoid suspicion.

At first she would try and escape whenever he left, but the only time she got close, he came back. Her hands were free and she was frantically trying to untie her feet, her hands bleeding from the effort of pulling at the rope. When he caught her, he pinned her to the bed by pressing his arm against her neck and sitting on her while he punched her in the ribs. He didn't stop until after she passed out.

After that, she didn't try and escape. She didn't fight back or argue. She just switched off. Until, finally, she saw her chance.

_**"That ginger friend of yours really is getting on my nerves," he said one night as he opened a beer. He sat in a chair beside the bed and began playing with her hair absentmindedly. He had been gone for a few days this time, which meant that pretty soon, he'd want sex. "Every time I see her she looks miserable as sin, not that I see her that often. From what I've gathered she doesn't leave the house much anymore. It's like she's trying to prove to everyone that she misses you the most. Like she was your best friend or something stupid. When everyone knows I'm your best friend. But do I get as much sympathy as her? Do I hell," he said, drinking his beer. Beca thought about Chloe shutting herself away and it made her heart ache. She missed Chloe more than she could comprehend. She wanted to get out of this hell, now more than ever.**_

_**"Jess?" She said, her voice quiet and timid and nothing like Beca's voice at all.**_

_**"What?" He said, almost surprised to hear her speak.**_

_**"Can... Can you untie me, please? Just my hands," she said, her heart pounding.**_

_**"Why would you ask a stupid question like that?" He said.**_

_**"Please, Jesse. They've been stuck in that position for days, they're killing me. I'm not going to try anything, I'm not an idiot," she said. She could see him waying up the pros and cons of what she was asking him as he brought the bottle to his lips again.**_

_**"If you try anything, things are going to get really bad for you, understand?" He said.**_

_**"I promise," she said. How much worse can it get? she thought. He reached across and untied her hands. She let out a sigh of relief and sat up, rubbing her hands as she felt the blood rush back into them. "Thank you." She thought about what to do next. Making a move now was impossible, he was too alert, too ready for her to make a break. "Sit behind me," she said, deciding on what to do. He did as she asked and she positioned herself between his legs, lying back against his chest. She took his arms and pulled them around her waist.**_

_**"What are you doing?" He asked, reluctant to relax into the position.**_

_**"I just... I just need this, okay? I've... I've actually missed you," she said, feeling sick as his hands moved across her bruised ribs.**_

_**"Do my ears deceive me? Is Beca Mitchell actually asking me to hold her?" He said, tightening his arms around her. She forced herself to laugh. They stayed like that for a while. "This is nice," he said softly into her hair. She reached up and placed a hand on the back of his head, before turning hers and kissing him. She closed her eyes, repressing her urges to cry and throw up. He returned her kiss enthusiastically.**_

_**"Untie my legs," she said, softly into his mouth, as her free hand trailed up his thigh.**_

_**"What? I don't think-"**_

_**"Jesse, I want to fuck you properly," she said.**_

_**"Shit, okay," he replied, moving from behind her and quickly untying her ankles. Again, she knew she couldn't act now, he was to ready for her to run. She pushed him back onto the bed before straddling his lap, doing her best 'Beca smirk' before kissing him again. "God I love you," he said. "Don't you love me?" She didn't reply. "Beca," he said, stopping their kiss, "do you love me?"**_

_**"Sure," she said, trying to kiss him again. He stopped her.**_

_**"Say it," he said.**_

_**She couldn't. She was saving those three words for someone else.**_

_**"Say it," he said again.**_

_**She had to act now. She punched him in the face before kneeing him between the legs. The force of her punch combined with the fact that he wasn't expecting it, sent his head flying back and into the stone wall, knocking him out. She wasted no time in reaching into his pocket for the key to the room and unlocking it. She climbed a set of stairs up into what looked like a living room area. She ran for the front door to find it predictably locked. The key that had let her out of the other room didn't work. There was a small window, however, and she slammed her fist into it several times until the glass finally cracked. She forced herself through the empty window, glass slicing her bare legs as she went through. She ran, barefoot through the woods until she tripped and couldn't get back up. Pain was screaming through every inch of her body, and she was fighting off a growing darkness that was creeping into her field of vision.**_

_**When the pair of hands turned her over, she was convinced it would be him. Convinced that she was about to pay the ultimate price for what she'd done. It wasn't him.**_

_**"Beca? Beca Mitchell?" A man asked.**_

_**"Help me," she said, before giving in and letting the darkness take her.**_

"Then I woke up and I was in hospital," Beca said, finishing her story. "He came not long after and... and said if I said anything, he would... he would kill Chloe."

"End of interview," the detective said, pressing stop on the recorder. "Thank you for doing that Ms Mitchell. I understand how hard that must of been, but now we at least have enough evidence to prosecute him." He left Beca his card and then left, leaving the two girls to sit in the silence that surrounded them.

"They're going to find him," Chloe said, taking her hand. Beca nodded.

"That... that night, in your text, you... you said there was something you wanted to talk to me about. W-what was it?" Beca said, still stammering over her words. Chloe's hand involuntarily tightened around hers.

"It doesn't matter right now," she said. She didn't want to add to Beca's stress right now, and also didn't want her to feel awkward in her home. She assumed that Beca didn't feel the same.

"Please Chlo'," Beca said. "Everything has been about me these past few days. About... about what happened. Can... can we just have a normal conversation?"

"Okay," Chloe said, steadying her nerves. "That night I was going to tell you that... That I liked you." Beca was silent for a few seconds before Chloe spoke up again. "I get if you can't deal with this right now. I mean, considering what you've been through it's understan-"

"Liked?" Beca said, cutting her off.

"What?"

"You said liked. As in, past tense," Beca said, not wanting to cry. _Of course Chloe didn't feel the same about you now_, she told herself. _You're damaged. Broken. You aren't the same._

"Shit," Chloe said, hitting herself in the forehead. "That's not what I-"

"I get it," Beca said, taking her hand from Chloe's.

"No, Beca," Chloe said, wondering how she could have possibly screwed this up. "I didn't mean it that. I... That night I was going to say that I liked you. But... But now... Now it's different," Chloe said, stammering herself now. She couldn't find the right words and it was all coming out wrong.

"You don't have to explain," Beca said, standing and heading for the bedroom.

"I don't like you, I love you," Chloe blurted out. Beca froze.

"What?"

"I fucking love you, okay?"


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Sorry for the delay folks! Thanks for sticking with me **

**I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters**

* * *

"I fucking love you, okay?"

The words hung in the air, waiting for a response. Beca opened her mouth to speak but, with a familiar feeling of dread, none would come. She turned to look at Chloe. Both girls had tears pooling in their eyes.

"I..." Beca managed to choke out, while opening and closing her mouth.

The silence around them was painful but Beca couldn't shatter it. She just watched, helpless as Chloe's heart broke in front of her.

"It's okay," Chloe said, feeling confused and devastated. She had thought Beca's hurt at the thought that she didn't like her anymore meant that she reciprocated. "You don't have to say anything."

_Just say that you love her!_ Beca's head shouted at her. She wanted to, desperately. She had been saving these words for Chloe. Saving them for this moment, but they wouldn't come.

The front door opened. Aubrey had left them to it while Beca gave her statement so she didn't have the pressure of having to do it in front of another person, and now she'd returned home to find them staring at each other in silence.

"What's going on?" She asked, looking between the two.

"Nothing," Chloe said, softly, defeated. "It's alright, Beca. Honestly." She wiped the tears from her cheeks. "I didn't think you'd feel the same. I shouldn't have said anything, you have enough to be dealing with, without this."

Beca opened her mouth again.

"I'm sorry," she managed to get out. She couldn't believe this was happening. She had imagined this moment in her head a thousand times but it never ended like this. The moment was slipping through her fingers and she couldn't grasp it. Chloe gave her a sad smile before going into her room, closing the door silently behind her. "I... I'm..." She stammered to Aubrey who was in shock at what she'd walked in on.

"It's okay, Beca," Aubrey said, sensing she was about to have some kind of panic attack.

"It's not," she said, panicked tears rushing down her face. "I... I need to tell her."

"Write down what you want to say to her," Aubrey said. Beca nodded before rushing into her room.

After ten minutes of writing and scribbling out words, Beca timidly knocked on Chloe's door.

"Come in," she heard Aubrey say. "I'll leave you two to it," she said, leaving the room. Beca was still standing in the doorway, the note clutched in her hand.

"Come here," Chloe said, softly, patting the bed beside her. Beca sat beside her and handed over the slightly crumpled piece of paper. As she read, she felt Beca's hand slip into her own.

_Chloe, I can't believe I screwed that up so badly._

_You are the single greatest person in my life and I love you. I love you so much that I couldn't form the words._

_And I'm sorry._

_But I do love you. And I want to be able to say that. So ask me._

"Do you love me?" Chloe asked, her voice shaking as her grip on Beca's hand grew tighter.

"I... I love you," she said. Chloe let out something in between a laugh and a sob. She wanted to pull the girl into her arms and kiss her until they were both desperate for air. But she knew that Beca would, understandably, probably freak out if she did that. So instead, she slowly placed her hand on the back of Beca's head and inched herself closer.

"Can I kiss you?" Chloe asked. Beca swallowed and nodded before surging forward, capturing Chloe's kiss.

Fireworks erupted inside her, combined with surges of fear. She suppressed the panic rising inside her and focused on the feel of Chloe's hair tangled in her fingers and the feel of the redhead's own hands moving up her back.

_She isn't Jesse._

She focused on the softness of her lips, so different to the harsh stubble from Jesse she was used to. She focused on Chloe's hands holding her up instead of pinning her down. She focused on the smell of Chloe's perfume that replaced the smell of stale beer and sweat.

Her heart was beating uncomfortably.

_She isn't Jesse._

She didn't want to stop the kiss, but the panic and fear was beginning to outweigh the pleasure.

_She isn't Jesse. She isn't Jesse. She isn't -_

"Beca," Chloe's soft voice broke her thoughts. She hadn't realised she'd stopped kissing Chloe. Hadn't realised she was taking erratic shallow breaths as she squeezed her eyes closed even tighter. "I got carried away, I'm sorry." Beca shook her head.

"It's my fault," she said. "I just... I panicked a bit... Sorry."

"No," Chloe said, her voice harder. "Don't apologise for this. Of course doing this kind of thing is going to freak you out, I should have thought or stopped it or something. You're just really good at that," Chloe added with a wink. Beca smiled almost shyly. "You just have to tell me when this all gets too much for you, okay? We'll do everything at your pace."

"But... But it might take a while," she said, her eyes downcast.

"Then that's how long we'll wait," Chloe said, resting her hand under Beca's chin and tilting her head up. "You aren't getting rid of me."

"You shouldn't have to give up your love life to wait for me," Beca said.

"I'm not giving up anything to be with you, Beca. I don't just want you for sex, I want you for you. I love you," Chloe said, desperate to make her understand.

"I love you too," Beca said, softly. Chloe could see how exhausted she was so she lay back on the bed and tugged Beca's hand so she would lie with her. Beca complied, resting her head on Chloe's chest and draping an arm across her stomach. Chloe, in turn, put her arm around her and pulled her close, her hand resting on her hip. "Thank you," Beca said, stifling a yawn.

"What for?" Chloe asked, but Beca had already fallen asleep. She looked down at the tiny form of her girlfriend. Her heart did a flip as she thought the word. Her eyes couldn't stay away from the bruises and rope burns on her wrists that peaked out from under the cuffs of her shirt. They looked even worse today than they did yesterday, though Chloe assumed that was normal. Beca's shirt had ridden up slightly and she could clearly see her ribs almost poking through the pale and bruised skin. There were even bruises on her neck that she'd not spotted before, and she wondered how many times Jesse had tried to choke her. She couldn't believe that anyone could have done this to her, let alone someone who was supposed to be her friend. She felt sick at the thought of Jesse, his hands running all over her. Touching her. Beating her.

She shook her head, forcing the thoughts from her mind. Instead she listened to Beca's steady breathing, and counted her blessings that the tiny brunette was still alive.

She knew that the next few months, probably even longer, were going to be really rough for her and it would be a long time before the old Beca came back, if she ever did. Not that Chloe minded. She would be there for Beca no matter how long it took.

* * *

After Beca had woken up, the two girls had joined Aubrey in the living room and ordered pizza. To Beca's frustration she could only manage one slice before feeling sick.

"I miss eating," she said, grumpily.

"Give it time, Becs," Chloe said, giving her a quick kiss on the temple.

"Ugh you two are adorable, it makes me sick," Aubrey said.

"I'm not adorable," Beca said, smirking as she cuddled into Chloe.

"Are too," Chloe said, smiling herself.

The sound of the buzzer rang through the apartment.

Chloe felt Beca tense up beside her.

"It's okay," she said softly as Aubrey went to answer it.

"Who is it?" Aubrey asked as she pressed the intercom buzzer.

"Detective Anderson. I'm working Beca's case, I spoke to her this morning," a voice said back. "I have some news for her." Aubrey pressed the button that unlocked the door.

"Maybe they've found Jesse," Aubrey said as she waited for him to arrive.

"Well, what is it?" Chloe asked once he was seated.

"Uh, well, our officers went back to the woods where they found you Miss Mitchell, and they tried to find the cabin you say he held you at," Anderson said, looking slightly uncomfortable.

"And?" Chloe said.

"And... And it's been burned down."


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Hey buddies, here's the latest. Thank you all again for the support and patience, I love the lot of you.**

**I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters**

* * *

"What do you mean it's been burned down?" Chloe asked. She felt Beca sink back into the chair beside her, her head dropping into her hands.

"It seems it's been torched. We suspect arson," Anderson said. "If you ask me, it's Jesse trying to cover his tracks."

"But surely you have enough evidence that that doesn't matter, right?" Aubrey asked.

"The more evidence we have against Jesse the better," he said. "We have enough to arrest him and prosecute him, but if he gets a good lawyer... He could get away with this."

"This is bullshit," Chloe said. "He can't get away with what he did to her."

"I know," he said. "If we can prove that Jesse set the cabin on fire, that will hurt him in court. We're doing all we can, I just wanted to keep you updated." He stood to see himself out. "I really am sorry about this. We're doing all we can to find him," he said before he left.

"I can't believe this," Chloe said.

"He's... he's actually going to get away with this, isn't he?" Beca asked, her face still buried in her hands.

"No way," Aubrey replied. "There's no way I'm going to let that happen."

"He can afford a good lawyer," Beca said, finally lifting her head off. "His parents are rich. I can't afford shit. It'll... it'll come down to my word against his."

"The police have evidence against him," Chloe said.

"The only concrete thing they have is evidence that we had sex," Beca said.

"And the fact that you're full of fucking bruises," Chloe replied, getting angry at the thought of Jesse getting off.

"And... and what is there to say that he did that?" Beca asked, still stammering over her words. "There's nothing."

"Look, we're getting way ahead of ourselves here. This might not even go to trial. But Beca's right, a good lawyer can stop Jesse from going to jail," Aubrey said, quietly. "But a great lawyer can make sure he goes down."

"I can't afford a great lawyer," Beca said. "I can't even afford a bad lawyer."

"It's lucky then that one of your best friends happens to be the daughter of one of the best lawyers in the country," Aubrey said, a smile playing on her lips now. "Excuse me while I go and make a phone call."

"Whatever happens, we aren't going to let Jesse hurt you again," Chloe said, taking Beca's hand. "I promise."

Beca wanted to tell Chloe not to make promises she couldn't keep. She wanted to tell her that as long as Jesse was out and walking the streets, none of them were safe. But she didn't have the energy to attempt to form the words. Every sentence still felt like an effort for her. Each word was a struggle to force out. So she just nodded and allowed herself to be wrapped in the temporary safety of Chloe's arms.

"Things are going to be okay," Chloe said, softly.

"I hope so," Beca replied.

Aubrey returned to the living room, smiling.

"What?" Chloe asked, eying her suspiciously.

"If it gets to that stage, which I doubt it will. The police should have enough evidence on Jesse to make a conviction stick. But if it does, my dad will represent you, for free," Aubrey said with a satisfied smile.

"Are you serious?" Beca asked, sitting up. "Why would he do that?"

"My father might not be the most supportive person in the world. Or the most kind... Or loving... But if there's one thing he cannot stand is people escaping justice. I explained the situation and he agreed to take your case on," Aubrey said.

She expected Beca to be grateful and to thank her. What she didn't expect was for Beca to walk across the room and pull her into a hug, squeezing her tighter than she'd ever been held. The Beca she knew wasn't a hugging person. She did it with Chloe because, well, everyone did it with Chloe. It was unavoidable. But Beca didn't. Physical contact wasn't her thing, yet here she was.

"Thank you," she said. "And your dad... I need to thank him too. I'll... I'll write him a letter or something."

"You're welcome, Beca," Aubrey said, her voice a little softer. "Jesse won't wriggle out of this. There's not a chance in hell I'll let him."

* * *

That night, Beca was back in the spare room, changing for bed, when there was a knock at the door.

"Come in," Beca said, pulling up her pyjama bottoms. Chloe opened the door and closed it quietly behind her. "Since when did you learn to knock first?" Beca asked, smirking.

"Since that time I walked in on Aubrey doing naked yoga," Chloe said, shuddering.

"Naked yoga? Is that like a thing now?" Beca asked, half laughing.

"I hope not," Chloe said. "Anyway, I just wanted to check you were okay before I went to bed."

"Yeah, I'm fine," Beca replied, not entirely convincing.

"You don't have to pretend," Chloe said, sitting on the edge of the bed. Beca sat down beside her.

"Okay," she said. "I'm not fine. I'm scared."

"I know," Chloe said, taking her hand and kissing the back of it. "I am too."

"I'm scared he's going to... to come back. If he got me again... there's... there's no way he'd let me escape. Not twice," Beca said, her fears spilling out of her as tears filled her eyes.

"Look at me," Chloe said, softly. She did. "I won't let him. He will get to you over my dead body, okay?"

"That's what I'm most afraid of," Beca said. "He could have really hurt you yesterday. I'd never forgive myself if something happened to you."

"That's how I feel about you, Becs. I was a mess while you were... I just kept thinking something awful had happened to you, and I couldn't do anything to help. And I now I know... Awful things _were_ happening. And the thought of him even looking at you again makes me so angry I..." She trailed off. Her voice getting stuck in her throat as tears filled her eyes. "We'll look out for each other, yeah?" Chloe said, her thumb brushing across the back of her hand. "We'll make sure he doesn't hurt anyone again."

"Yeah," Beca said softly, leaning across to kiss Chloe, who broke them apart after a few seconds. "Will... will you stay with me tonight?" She asked. "I don't want to be alone."

"Of course," Chloe said. "Always."


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Thank you thank you thank you thank you for such an amazing response to the last chapter! You are all amazing and I love you.**

**I also want to give a shout out to KissKendrick who is always super supportive and always willing to listen to my ideas and give me advice whenever I doubt myself or get stuck. She's amazing and so are her fics.**

**Anyway, on with the chapter!**

**I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters.**

* * *

Beca woke up at around 5am the next morning.

Something was wrong.

There was a pain radiating across her stomach and she felt sick. She slowly eased her way out of bed and stood up to head to the bathroom. Then she felt it. Blood was running down her leg. She clutched the desk to steady herself.

"Chloe," she said, softly, her voice shaking. She didn't think there was any chance that the redhead had heard her, but miraculously Chloe could sense something was going on.

"Beca? What is it?" Chloe asked sleepily sitting up. She saw Beca holding onto the desk, her legs were shaking slightly.

"Something isn't right," she said. She could feel the room begin to shift around her as her pain and sickness increased. "I think... Chlo' I think I'm bleeding."

"Shit," Chloe said, scrambling from the bed. "Okay. Okay. Fuck, what do I do?"

"I don't know," Beca said her knees giving way as the pain gave another surge. "Shit, this really hurts," she said, squeezing her eyes shut. Chloe grabbed her, easing her to the ground.

"You're okay," Chloe said softly, trying not to show her panic. "We're going to get you to the hospital. Everything's going to be fine."

"Okay," Beca said, tears forming in her eyes as she clutched onto Chloe.

Chloe helped her into some clothes and then, with Aubrey's help, got her into the back of her car.

They were at the hospital for roughly an hour before a doctor finally came and told them what had happened.

He was one of the doctor's who treated Beca when she was first admitted, and he looked just as sorry and uncomfortable now as he did then.

"Beca," he said, "we have found the cause of your stomach pain and bleeding."

"And?" Chloe asked, taking Beca's hand. She felt sick. From the look on the doctor's face, she knew it wouldn't be good news.

"You, uh, you've had a miscarriage," he said. "I'm sorry. We were going to call you in today anyway, we just got the results from the tests we took when you were last in here. You were about three weeks pregnant. It seems with the stress of everything that's happened, you lost it. I really am sorry."

"Oh my god," Chloe said softly, squeezing Beca's hand.

Beca didn't say anything, she just nodded to show she understood what he was saying. She had had a life growing inside her all this time and hadn't known. And now it was gone. A little life that she had never planned for but that had been there nonetheless.

"Can I go home?" She asked the doctor, her voice barely holding out.

"Uh, yes, of course," he said. "You might find that you still have some pain and bleeding over the next few days but we'll give you a prescription to help with that." He went to retrieve all the necessary forms and once Beca had signed them and collected the medication, the three girls left.

Beca didn't speak during the car-ride home. She just stared out of the window, squeezing Chloe's hand whenever the redhead would squeeze hers first.

"I'm gonna take a shower," she said when they arrived back at the apartment.

Standing under the hot jet of water, she waited for the emotions to hit her. But they didn't. She watched the water turn scarlet at her feet as the blood was washed from her but she still felt totally numb.

She couldn't work out what her feelings even were.

She hadn't known she was pregnant. Hadn't grown attached to the idea. Had never even considered the possibility that she might want kids one day. And she definitely didn't want a child with Jesse.

But somewhere inside her she knew there was this deep sense of loss. She could feel it. Like it was sitting at the edge of her heart, ready to move in and crush her.

She closed her eyes and gave herself permission to cry. Allowing herself to mourn the loss of the baby that was no bigger than a speck of dust. She let the tears fall and then shook herself out of it. There had been no baby there really, she told herself, washing off the last of the blood, and there was no point dwelling on it. She couldn't afford to give into it. It was hard enough trying to keep herself together.

She climbed out of the shower and stared at her reflection, cleaning the fog from the mirror with a sweep of her hand. She didn't move from that spot until the emotion was gone from her face. Only after her features became an expressionless mask did she pull on some clean clothes and leave the bathroom.

Aubrey was waiting for her in the living room.

"Chloe's in your room," she said. "I have to go to class now, but I wanted to check you were okay."

Beca nodded. "I'm fine," she said.

Aubrey didn't believe her, but knew that pushing Beca to talk about it wouldn't work. So she just gave her a brisk hug and left for her class.

Beca gave herself a second before going into her room. She knew Chloe would want to talk about it and she had a feeling that just looking at her would break her resolution. When she walked into the room, however, she saw Chloe asleep, curled up on the bed. She must have been in the shower long than she'd thought.

As quietly and gently as she could, she eased herself onto the bed so she was sitting beside her sleeping girlfriend. She moved the hair from her face before her hand came to rest on the back of her head, her thumb brushing along the top of her neck.

_She would have made an amazing mother._

The thought sprang into her head before she could stop it, and she withdrew her hand instantly. She couldn't allow those thoughts in her head.

And even if she was still pregnant, it's not like she could have expected Chloe to stick by her. To give up her whole life and raise a child.

And even if she'd agreed to do that, wanted to, even, they'd only been a couple for a day. Less than 24 hours probably. There was no way their relationship would be able to take the strain of raising a child.

And even if it did. Even if, despite everything, they were able to pull it off, was that something Beca even wanted? That kind of life with Chloe? A family?

_Yes_, she thought. _More than anything._

She nearly broke down crying at that revelation. She pulled her knees into her chest and rested her head on them, forcing herself to take steadying breaths, fighting every urge to fall apart.

She felt Chloe shift beside her and a second later the redhead had pulled Beca into her arms, folding her into a strong, warm, hug.

_Don't cry_, she told herself as Chloe pressed her lips to her head. _Don't cry._

"It's okay," Chloe said, softly, holding her even tighter. "However you're feeling right now is okay. So let yourself feel it." Beca couldn't stop the choked sob that escaped her, or the many that followed. Chloe didn't say another word, just held her long after she'd cried herself to sleep. Eventually she laid down, keeping Beca safely wrapped in her arms. Only then did she allow her own tears to fall.

She knew she had no right to mourn the loss of this child, but she hadn't been able to stop picturing the life the three of them could have shared had things gone differently. She also knew that when the time was right they could do it properly, but that didn't make the pain of this any easier to deal with.

She closed her eyes and tried to focus on the good things. Beca was alive. Less than a week ago, Beca was being beaten and raped on an almost daily basis and now she was safe. Sleeping peacefully in her arms. She still had a long way to go, but she'd be okay. They could get through anything together.

The vibration of her phone on the bedside table pulled her from her thoughts and she quickly reached over to answer it. Aubrey was calling her.

"Hello?" She whispered.

"Chloe, they've arrested Jesse."

"What?" Chloe said, forgetting to whisper and waking up Beca in the process.

"They've just arrested Jesse!"


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters**

* * *

Police Officer Dennis Jordan shifted uncomfortably in his police car. His partner, Josie Roberts, was sitting in the passenger seat, drumming out a tune on her thighs.

"That's super annoying," he said, cracking his neck as he faced his sixth solid hour sitting outside Jesse Swanson's apartment.

"So's your face," she replied, drumming even louder.

"Really? That's your comeback?" He said, nudging her so she'd stop the incessant tapping. "There's no way this Swanson kid is coming back here. He must know the whole of Barden PD is looking for him."

"Wow, Barden PD. We must be quite the intimidating police force," Josie replied, rolling her eyes. "I hope he does show up here."

"Think you can take him down, Roberts?" Dennis said smirking at her.

"I'd just like five minutes alone with him. You heard what he did to that girl," Josie said, no longer smiling.

"Well, if he knows what's good for him, he'll stay away," Dennis said. "What time is it?" He stifled a yawn.

"6am," Josie said.

It was another hour before something happened. Students were starting to mill around the campus. Chatting to each other. Getting coffee. Heading to classes.

"Holy shit," Josie said, almost whispering. "That's him."

"What?" Dennis asked, grabbing a pair of binoculars from the dashboard. "Shitting hell, it is him. Call it in and then let's go and get him." He turned to look at Josie and found she was already out of the car and running towards the dorm where Jesse just entered. "Oh fuck." He called it in and then followed his partner, ignoring the looks of the startled passer-bys.

"Jesse Swanson?" Josie said when she reached him.

"Uh, yeah?" He asked, looking confused.

"You are under arrest for the kidnap, abuse and sexual assault of Beca Mitchell," she said pushing him against a wall and cuffing his hands.

"Wait, what the fuck?" He said.

"You have the right to remain silent-"

"Wait, wait, you've got this all wrong. I didn't-"

"Anything you do say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney-"

"I didn't do anything!" Jesse shouted, clearly panicking.

"If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed to you!" Josie said, matching his volume. "Do you understand these rights as they have been read to you?"

"I didn't-"

"Do you understand these rights as they have been read to you?!" Josie said, shouting over him.

"Yes," Jesse said. "I understand." With the help of Dennis, Josie dragged Jesse from the building and back towards the police car.

Aubrey was just coming out of the campus coffee shop when she saw the commotion.

"I didn't do anything!" Jesse shouted again. His eyes met Aubrey's and she started moving towards him. "Aubrey," he said as she got closer. "You know me. You know I wouldn't-"

She slapped him hard across the face.

"I hope you fucking rot in hell," Aubrey said, tears burning her eyes.

"Miss, step back, please," Dennis said.

"Fuck you, Jesse!" She yelled as Josie detached herself from Jesse to hold Aubrey back. "Fuck you for what you did to her."

"Okay, take it easy," Josie said, gently moving Aubrey back.

"Don't believe a word he says," she said. "Beca wouldn't lie about this, he did it."

* * *

After making her phone call to Chloe, Aubrey rushed back to the apartment where Chloe and Beca were sitting in the living room. Beca's hands were clasped in front of her, her knuckles white.

"What happened?" Chloe asked, standing as soon as she saw Aubrey enter.

"I just saw him getting dragged out of his dorm building by two cops," she said, taking a seat in one of the armchairs. "He kept shouting that he didn't do anything. He even spoke to me." Aubrey told them what he had said, casting a worried glance at Beca who had yet to move or speak.

"Why would he come back to Barden? He must have known he'd get caught," Chloe said, pacing.

"He wanted to get caught," Beca said, speaking at last. "He's trying to look innocent."

* * *

"Where have you been, Jesse?" Detective Anderson said, sitting across from Jesse and his lawyer.

"I went to see my parents for a couple of days," he said. "Is that a crime now?"

"Jesse," his lawyer said in a warning tone.

"And your parents can verify?" Anderson asked.

"Of course," Jesse replied. "Look, I don't know what Beca's told you, but I didn't do anything to her."

"Why would she say you did?" Anderson asked, looking down at Beca's statement which sat on the table in front of him. "Why would she say you held her against her will and beat and raped her multiple times?"

"That's bullshit!" He said, his voice rising. "I'll admit Beca and I had sex, but I didn't rape her."

"From the evidence we have Jesse, and from what Beca told us, we know you had sex with her while she was missing," Anderson said. "Anything to say on that?"

Jesse looked to his lawyer, who shook his head a fraction.

"No," Jesse said, looking down. "I didn't... I didn't rape her. I wouldn't do that."

"When was the last time you saw Beca?"

"When they made me leave the hospital," Jesse said.

"You haven't seen her since she got out?" Anderson asked. He shook his head. "And what about Chloe?"

"I dunno, the same time I guess."

"Can we take a look at your back?" Anderson asked.

He looked nervously to his lawyer. "Why?"

"Because I think you're lying, Jesse," he said.

Jesse stood from the chair and lifted his shirt, revealing two long bruises along his back.

"How did you get those?" Anderson asked, trying not to smile.

"I got into a fight at a bar the night before Beca was found," he said sitting back down on the chair.

"Why would Beca say you got them after she hit you with a baseball bat after you, for the second time, threatened to kill Chloe?"

"Because clearly she's a lying bitch!" Jesse said, his temper rising again.

"I think you're the one who's lying," Anderson said. "And I think we have enough evidence here to put you away for a very long time."

* * *

Beca put her phone down after talking with the detective.

"He's in custody," she said, letting out a small sigh of relief. "They have enough evidence to prosecute him so he'll stay in jail until the trial."

"Why do they even need a trial?" Chloe said, angry that there was still a chance Jesse could get off.

"Well if he pleads guilty, they'll need to sentence him. If he pleads not guilty then we'll have to go through the trial," Aubrey said, still looking nervously at Beca. "Are you okay, Beca?" She nodded.

"I just want all this to be over," Beca said, finally allowing herself a smile. "I want to move on and actually start living, you know?"

"Yeah," Chloe said, taking her hand and smiling. "I don't see how there's any way he can get off. And once he's been sent down, we can move on."

Aubrey remained quiet. She didn't want to say it, but she knew there was a reasonable chance Jesse could get off. She had seen it happen before.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Thank you for all the reviews/follows/favourites/views. You are all amazing people.**

**I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters**

* * *

"Becs, are you sure about this?" Chloe asked, sitting on the edge of Beca's bed as the brunette fixed her make up in the mirror.

"Of course," Beca replied. "I need to start getting back to normal. You're going to go do your final exam, I'm going to meet my dad for coffee and then the Bellas are coming over for a celebratory drink."

"But if you're not ready, we can cancel," Chloe said. "Don't push yourself too hard." Beca sighed softly.

"I'm never going to feel ready to do things like this. I mean, my make up was finished ten minutes ago but I know as soon as I stop then I have to go outside on my own. I'm fucking terrified but I know I have to do it. I can't rely on you to be by my side every minute of every day. Not if I ever want things to get back to normal," Beca said, turning to face Chloe.

"It's only been two weeks," Chloe said, standing and walking towards Beca. She took her hands in her own and brushed her thumbs across her knuckles. "You're allowed to give yourself time to recover. After everything that's happened-"

"I know what's happened to me," Beca said, cutting her off. "And I know that if I wanted to I could spend the next month or so hiding indoors but just sitting here dwelling isn't going to help me."

"Okay," Chloe said softly, squeezing her hands. "If you need me, for anything, just call. I'll have finished my test by one."

"Thanks," Beca said, kissing her. "Now get out of here or you'll be late."

"You don't want me to walk you to the coffee shop?" Chloe said, glancing nervously at her watch.

"Chloe, I won't be the reason you fail," Beca said, smiling. "Aubrey will kill me, go."

"Love you," Chloe said, kissing her cheek before she rushed out of the room.

"Love you too," Beca replied, her smile slipping as she contemplated the prospect of leaving the apartment. She looked down at her watch. She had twenty minutes to get to the coffee shop on campus.

_Jesse's in jail_, she thought to herself, her hand resting on the front door handle. _He can't hurt you._

She took a deep breath and pushed the handle down, opening the door. Her footsteps echoed through the corridor as she made her way to the door leading to the street. She could feel her heart thumping, surprised it wasn't making as much noise as her footsteps. Again, she stopped at the door.

"Come on, Beca," she muttered to herself.

She opened the door and stepped outside. There were a few people milling around but the street was pretty much empty. She turned around, checking behind her to make sure she wasn't being followed.

_Deep breaths._

She began walking towards campus, her hands shaking in her pockets.

She heard footsteps behind her and she whipped around.

There was no one there.

She turned and carried on walking. Her pace quickening. She heard the footsteps again.

No one there.

"Fuck," she whispered to herself. She pushed away the urge to go back home and carried on walking, her breathing getting more and more erratic.

This time when she heard the footsteps behind her, she ignored them, walking even faster.

As she finally reached the campus, every noise made her jump. She felt physically sick as she tried to block out the sound of the footsteps which had become even louder.

She felt herself relax as she saw the coffee shop. A second later, a hand touched her shoulder.

She screamed and spun around, rapidly backing away.

"Beca, chill, it's just me," Stacie said. Concern had flooded her face as she saw the look of pure panic and terror in Beca's eyes. "Becs?"

"S-sorry," she said, trying to get her breath back. "I th-thought you were..."

"It's okay," Stacie said, cautiously reaching out to touch Beca's shoulder. The small brunette flinched slightly. "Sorry I scared you."

Beca shook her head, swallowing her fear as she finally felt her heart rate slow to something close to normal.

"How are you?" She asked.

"Good," Beca replied. Stacie raised her eyebrows. "Better than I was."

"I have to go and fail this test, so I'll see you tonight, yeah?" She said, resisting the urge to hug her friend, not knowing how she'd react.

"Yeah," Beca said, trying her best to smile.

She joined her dad who was sitting in the back corner of the coffee shop, her favourite drink already sitting in front of the empty seat opposite him.

"I need to say something," he said as she sat down.

"Dad," Beca said, sensing where this was going, "you don't have to. I get it."

"I do have to," he said. "I've been a shit dad these past few weeks. I was so freaked out by what had happened to you that I panicked. I know I can't give you the kind of care you need right now. I'm not that kind of dad. I've never been that kind of dad."

Beca fought back the urge to cry. She wouldn't have admitted it to anyone, not even Chloe, but she had needed her dad these past couple of weeks. She needed the safety and love you can only really get from a parent, and he hadn't been there. "It's okay," she said, her voice wavering. She swallowed. "I've had Chloe." Her voice sounded stronger.

"I should have been there," he said. "And I want to make it up to you. I've paid for some counseling for you. They're with Dr. Richards, who is the best therapist in the state. You can start your sessions whenever you're ready."

Beca's eyes dropped so she was focusing on the steam rising from her coffee. "Thank you," she said in a slightly hollow voice, blinking back tears.

"I thought you'd be pleased," he said, sitting back in his chair.

"When you said you'd make it up to me I thought you meant... It doesn't matter," she said, gripping the cup.

Dr. Mitchell watched the nervous twitching of his daughter's hands as her fingers tapped irregular beats on the cup. He saw her leg shaking under the table. He also saw the almost yellow bruises around her wrists, peaking out from under her shirt. He knew what she wanted from him, but he couldn't give it to her. He had never been the paternal type and that used to work for them. He barely even knew the girl. He left when she was five and had only been reunited a year and a half ago.

"I'm sorry Beca, I'm not good at this. I'm not good at the whole parent thing," he said, placing a hand on her arm. She jerked it back as if she'd been burned. "See? I can't do anything right."

"Don't worry about it," Beca said, sipping her coffee.

He opened his mouth to respond but his phone started beeping which distracted him. He groaned as he read the text.

"Sorry Beca, I ha-"

"Go," she said, finally looking up from her coffee. He could see the tears pooling in her eyes. Her eyes which were so much like her mother's it was painful. He tore his eyes away from hers.

"Sorry," he said again, standing. He hesitated before pressing a nervous kiss to the top of her head. "I'll see you soon."

After he left, she knew she wouldn't be able to walk back home on her own, so she changed her seat so she was pressed as far into the corner as she could be, and sent a text to Chloe.

**Beca: When you get out of your test, can you come meet me at the coffee shop? xxx**

Beca waited for another hour and a half, still drinking her now cold coffee, before she got a reply.

**Chloe: On my way xxx**

By the time Chloe got there, she could see there was a definite change in Beca. She hadn't looked so scared and small since the night she was found. Her eyes were darting everywhere and Chloe could see the rapid rise and fall of her chest from the doorway. She made her way to the corner where Beca's table was, careful not to rush towards her.

"Becs?" Chloe said, softly. Beca reached out her hand. Chloe took it and Beca immediately pulled her into the chair beside her. "Everything okay?" Beca shook her head. "Do you want to go home?" Beca nodded but didn't move.

"I... I can't... Not right now," she said.

Chloe put her arm around her and pulled her into a hug.

"Okay," she said, kissing her forehead. "We can stay until you're ready."

Eventually, Beca's breathing evened out and she was calm enough to leave. Chloe linked their hands together as they made the short journey back to the apartment. She pretended not to notice the way Beca checked behind them every few minutes, and just gave her hand a reassuring squeeze.

"How did the test go?" Beca asked once she had found her voice again.

"Okay I think," Chloe said. "I think I did enough to pass." Beca felt a ripple of guilt run through her. It was her fault that Chloe hadn't been able to study much for the past couple of weeks. She should have been able to ace the test, not struggle through it. "How did it go with your dad?"

Beca shrugged. "He bought me some sessions with some therapist. Seemed to think that was enough to make up for him not being here."

"Do you think it was enough?" Chloe asked. Beca had never been open about her feelings towards her dad before, other than the general hostility she displayed towards him.

"Not really," Beca said, kicking a near-by stone and watching it bounce off the kerb and down a sewer grate. "It doesn't matter."

"He cares about you Becs," Chloe said, sensing that Beca cared more than she was letting on. "While you were missing, he was miserable. I'd see him around campus and he always looked lost and hurt and confused. He loves you."

Beca sniffed slightly, her eyes looking anywhere but at Chloe as they filled with tears. "I just wish he could say it," she said, softly.

"I know," Chloe said, squeezing her hand again.

Beca wiped her eyes with her sleeve and gave Chloe a weak smile. She looked exhausted. Chloe knew she wasn't sleeping enough. Almost every night since she had been found, she had woken Chloe up, screaming and shouting in her nightmares.

"It's not too late to cancel tonight," Chloe said when they reached the apartment. "Everyone will understand." Beca shook her head.

"I'm fine," she said. "And anyway, you and Aubrey deserve some fun."


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: Sorry this took so long, I suck :(**

**I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters**

* * *

That evening, Beca was sat on the sofa watching as each of the Bellas filed into the living room. She had pushed herself as far into corner of the sofa as she possibly could, and was resisting the urge to pull her knees into her chest.

Chloe kept squeezing her hand and softly brushing her thumb across her knuckles.

Beca smiled and greeted each of the girls as they took a seat either on one of the sofas or on the floor. She had seen them briefly in the hospital but this was the first time she had seen them all as a group and she could feel her anxiety rising.

"So, how have you been Becs?" Stacie asked when they were all settled with drinks.

"Okay," Beca replied, trying to sound as normal as possible.

"You don't have to pretend with us," Stacie said.

"I know," Beca said. "But I am okay, honestly. I wasn't, but I am now." She lied with ease and the other Bellas seemed to accept it. Stacie gave her a knowing look but didn't comment. "Fill me in on what's going on with you guys."

She felt herself relax as the girls began filling her in on everything she'd missed. She was relieved to find that all the girls were the same, and treated her the same as they always did. The only person who seemed different was Stacie, who wasn't rattling off a list of sexual partners like she used to. In fact, she hadn't mentioned sex once. And Beca didn't miss the way she and Aubrey would exchange small smiles.

"Stacie, can you come and help me get some more drinks for everyone?" Aubrey asked, her voice full of innocence.

"Sure," Stacie replied, fighting to hide the smirk that was tugging at the corners of her mouth.

"Yeah, go help her with the "drinks", Stace," Fat Amy said, causing the rest of the girls to laugh.

"Wait, what?" Beca asked, looking at Chloe wondering if she knew too. The redhead looked just as stunned. "Are they a thing?"

"Well, it's supposed to be a secret thing," Cynthia-Rose said, grinning. "But we figured it out."

"I can't believe Aubrey didn't tell me!" Chloe said, looking genuinely hurt.

"You have been a bit preoccupied looking after me," Beca said, squeezing her hand. "Maybe she didn't want to pile this on too."

"Maybe," Chloe said, pouting. "I will be having words with her."

"Be gentle, Red," Cynthia said.

"I can't promise that," Chloe said, reluctantly smiling.

"By the way, I am totally behind this midget on ginger action you've got going on here," Fat Amy said, gesturing at their entwined hands.

"Midget? Dude, I'm not even that small," Beca said.

"You're kinda small, babe," Chloe said.

"You're like barely five inches taller than me!" Beca said.

"Five inches is more than you'd think," Fat Amy said, "just ask any guy."

Stacie and Aubrey returned to the room with a tray of drinks, both of them a little red in the face. Aubrey's usually perfectly tamed hair was ruffled and Stacie had missed a button on her blouse. The girls all stared at the two with knowing smiles on their faces.

"Someone's got sex hair," Amy said in a loud mutter.

"Yep," Cynthia said, "total sex hair."

Aubrey blushed even harder.

Stacie, however, grinned and did her best Andy Dwyer from 'Parks and Recreation' impression.

"_You've got sex hair_," she sang, taking the tray from Aubrey's hands, "_and you got it from me, girl._" She took Aubrey's hands in her own. "_Sex hair, such a pretty rat's nest-_"

"Stop," Aubrey said, grinning, before she gave Stacie a chaste kiss. The rest of the girls wolf-whistled and cheered.

The sound of the apartment buzzer cut through their noise and caused Beca to immediately jump and suppress a small scream. Aubrey went over to their intercom.

"Hello?"

"Domino's Pizza," a bored voice said on the other end. Beca felt herself relax slightly as Aubrey went to get their food.

"Okay?" Chloe said softly so the other girls wouldn't hear. Beca nodded.

After several hours, Beca excused herself for a few minutes. She loved being back with the Bellas but she wasn't used to being around this amount of people and she was starting to feel overwhelmed.

She sat on the edge of her bed and rested her head in hands, talking deep breaths.

Chloe was itching to go and check on her, but Aubrey wouldn't let her.

"Give her some time," Aubrey said quietly, while the other girls were getting ready to play some drinking games.

"But what if something's wrong," Chloe said sulking, "what if she's having a panic attack or something?"

"She's fine, Chlo'," Aubrey said. "If she isn't back in two minutes, then you can check on her, okay?"

"Fine," Chloe said, staring at her watch, counting down the seconds. As soon as the two minutes were up, she went and tentatively knocked on the tiny brunette's door.

"Come in," Beca said quietly. Chloe pushed the door open and made her way over to the bed, sitting beside Beca.

Her tiny girlfriend looked beyond exhausted and her hands were shaking slightly.

"Everything good?" Chloe asked, tucking a strand of Beca's hair behind her ear. Beca nodded.

"It's just a bit much," she said. "I'll be back out in a minute."

"Becs it's okay to be overwhelmed by all this," Chloe said. "Don't force yourself to go back out there if you don't feel up to it. You've done so much today, if you push yourself too far you might break."

Beca let out a shaky breath and put her head in her hands again.

"Thank you," she said.

"What for?" Chloe asked, putting a hand on her knee.

"For reminding me that it's okay to not feel 100% back to normal," Beca said. "I keep getting frustrated at myself. I want to get better."

"You _are_ getting better," Chloe said. "You left the house by yourself today. You met up with your dad. You hung out with all the Bellas. You're doing much more than anyone can expect of you."

"I know," Beca said, still sounding upset and annoyed. "It's just... I'm away from him, aren't I? He's in prison and he can't get to me. I'm safe. I'm just... I'm so fucking scared all the time. And I don't want to be. I don't want to be scared anymore."

"I know, Becs," Chloe said. "I wish there was something I could do."

"You're doing more than you know, Chlo'. You really are."


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: ****I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters**

* * *

Jesse sat in his orange prison jumpsuit, across from his lawyer.

"I have a suit for you to wear in court," he said, gesturing to the package beside him. "It's from your father."

"Did he slip a nail file in there?" Jesse asked, one hand resting on the table, the other cuffed to his chair.

"It's been searched by the police, Jesse," his lawyer said.

"It was a joke, Dave," Jesse said, rolling his eyes. "You lawyers don't have much of a sense of humor, do you?"

"Do you realise how much trouble you're in?" Dave said, meeting Jesse's eyes for the first time. "You could get life. I think you should reconsider your plea. Your sentence will be considerably less."

"You don't think I'm innocent, do you?" Jesse asked, an edge to his voice. "You don't believe me?"

"It's not my job to believe you, it's my job to make _them_ believe you. I just want you to think very carefully."

"I'm not going down for this," Jesse said, pulling against his restraint. "I'm innocent."

Dave looked at him. For an nineteen-year-old kid, he should have looked frightened. He should have looked small and timid, especially considering he was proclaiming his innocence. He looked confident, cocky even. His face was covered in bruises no doubt receive from other inmates who also didn't believe his story. There was a look of menace glowing from his eyes that made Dave shift uncomfortably.

"If you say so," he said. "I'll see you soon, Jesse."

He stood and headed for the door, nodding to the police officer beside the door, letting him know Jesse was ready to be taken back to his cell. Jesse's voice stopped him at the door.

"My dad is paying you a small fortune to get me off," Jesse said, still staring ahead, a small smile playing on his lips. "So get me off."

* * *

Beca stared at her reflection in the full length mirror in Chloe's room. Her hands moved down her smart black jacket, shaking as they smoothed the near invisible creased. She was also wearing black trousers and a white shirt. Her dad had suggested a dress but Beca refused. Going to court was stressful enough without the added pressure of feeling exposed.

"You look great," Chloe said, standing behind her. She slipped her hands around her waist and rested her chin on her shoulder.

"I don't think I can do this," Beca said, her voice small and uncertain.

"You can," Chloe said firmly.

"I can't see him," she said, her eyes filling with tears. "Chlo', if I see him, I'll go to pieces." Chloe so she was standing in front of her.

"Look at me," Chloe said, cupping Beca's face in her hands. She kissed her slowly and tenderly. "You can do this," she said, their eyes still closed as they breathed each other in. "I'll be right there with you and if you don't want to look at him, then just look away. He won't be able to hurt you."

Beca nodded, her eyes still squeezed shut.

"Thank you," she said.

"Come on, we should go," Chloe said, kissing her forehead and taking her hand. "Aubrey and her dad are meeting us there and you know those Posen's hate tardiness."

* * *

Chloe and Beca took their seats in the court beside Aubrey and her father, Charles Posen. They were seated above the court room with some journalists and Detective Anderson.

Jesse's parents were sitting a few rows away from them, and kept giving Beca furious looks.

She ignored them.

Beca's own father joined them just before it was due to start.

"Sorry," he whispered. "Class ran late." Beca shook her head.

"How are you doing, Beca?" Anderson asked her, leaning across from his seat.

"Okay, thank you," Beca replied. He patted her on the back and Beca returned her attention to the court room below. Chloe squeezed her hand.

They stood when the judge entered, and soon after, he was brought out. Beca felt herself freeze. She couldn't tear her eyes away.

He was wearing a smart suit which seemed too big for him. He was clutching his hands together nervously and his eyes darted around the room. His face was bruised and he looked frightened and small.

Then his eyes met hers and she saw the familiar look of threat and aggression that plagued her nightmares. He wasn't frightened. He wasn't nervous. He was acting. He was trying to get off.

"Beca," Chloe whispered into her ear. "Beca, breathe."

Beca took a shaky breath and relaxed her grip on Chloe's hand.

"I'm here. You're okay," she whispered, kissing the back of her hand. Beca nodded and returned her eyes to Jesse.

He had seen their exchange and the anger his eyes and flared and his jaw was clenched.

"Jesse Swanson, you stand accused of the kidnap, sexual and physical abuse and false imprisonment of Rebeca Mitchell. How do you plead?"

Jesse took a breath and kept eye contact with Beca.

"Not guilty."

Beca closed her eyes as tears fell quickly. She had been expecting this. There was no way he would do the decent thing and confess what he'd done.

But hearing him say it was something else entirely.

Hearing him cast off everything he had done to her. One month of pain, misery and fear. One month denied with two simple words.

She started crying harder, her head buried in her hands.

"It's okay," Chloe said, pulling Beca into her arms.

"How can he do this?" She sobbed.

"I don't know," Chloe replied, tears in her own eyes. She looked to Aubrey and her dad who looked just as furious.

"You bastard!" Dr. Mitchell shouted from Beca's other side. "Look what you've done to my daughter, you evil bastard!"

"Remove that man," the judge said.

Beca looked up to see her dad being dragged from the room by two policemen.

"You wanna hope they lock you up, because if you get set free, I'm coming for you!" He shouted before the door closed in front of him.

"Order," the judge said, quietening the muttering that echoed around the courtroom. "The trial will begin in two weeks. Court is adjourned."

"Come on," Chloe said softly, helping Beca to her feet.

"Miss Mitchell, any comment?" A reporter asked as she left the courtroom.

"My client has no comment at this time," Charles Posen said, his hand coming to rest on Beca's back as he lead the three girls away from the gangs of paparazzi. "Beca," he said, kneeling down before her once they were a safe distance away. "I promise, I will do what I can to make sure he is prosecuted for this."

"Thank you, sir," Beca replied, surprise by this sudden act.

He stood and kissed Aubrey's cheek. "I'll see you girl's soon," he said before leaving.

"He's trying to be a bit more affectionate," Aubrey said, smiling. "Are you alright, Beca?"

"No," she replied, honestly. She ran a shaking hand through her hair. "I need a drink."

Chloe shot a nervous glance at Aubrey. Beca wasn't a big drinker in the first place, and she hadn't had one since she'd escaped.

"Can we get the Bellas around tonight?" She asked.

"Are you sure?" Chloe asked.

"I'm sure," Beca replied. "I just want to forget. Please."

"Okay," Chloe said, still not sure it was a good idea.

* * *

That night, the Bellas all sat in the three girls' living room and did their best to distract their tiny friend.

After several drinks, Beca had stopped joining in their conversations and fell silent. The other Bellas pretended not to notice the way she stared resolutely at the floor, blinking back tears.

"Come on," Chloe said, pulling Beca to her feet. Chloe hadn't had a drink all night, deciding instead to keep a watchful eye on Beca. "Bed time."

Beca's legs buckled beneath her as she tried to take a step. Chloe caught her and pulled her girlfriend's arm over her shoulder.

"You've never been able to handle your drink," Chloe teased, trying to suppress her worry. "It's because you're so small."

"No height jokes," Beca slurred as Chloe put her onto the bed.

As Chloe helped her change her clothes, Beca captured her lips in a long, passionate kiss.

"Beca," Chloe said, breaking them apart. She could taste the vodka on Beca's lips.

"Kiss me," Beca said, kissing her again. Her hands slipped clumsily under Chloe's top.

"Beca," Chloe said again. "Stop." She removed Beca's hands and kissed her softly on the forehead. "Not like this, okay?"

"Don't you want me?" Beca asked, her eyes full of tears.

"God yes," Chloe said, the need and desperation evident in her voice. "But you're drunk and vulnerable and I'm not taking advantage. I'm not him."

Beca blinked several times, digesting what Chloe had said. She started crying again.

"I'm sorry," she said.

"You have nothing to be sorry for," Chloe said, lying beside Beca and taking her in her arms.

"Please don't leave me," she said softly, burying her face into the crook of Chloe's neck.

"Never," Chloe said, stroking softly down her back. "Never."


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: Sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry I know I suck for taking so long :(**

**Anyway, chapter 15 is the start of the trial so this is a bit of a filler chapter, hope you like it. Please feel free to review or PM me or message me on tumblr or something. LOVE YOU ALL**

**I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters**

* * *

It didn't take Beca long to fall asleep that night, wrapped safely in Chloe's arms.

"Room's all spinney," she muttered, screwing her eyes up. "I hate alcohol."

"I know you do," Chloe said, laughing lightly.

Her drunken mumblings were soon replaced by relaxed, even breathing.

Chloe didn't sleep. Something was keeping her up so she spent her time just watching her tiny girlfriend.

Just looking at her there was no evidence that anything bad had happened to Beca. All her physical injuries were gone. There were no bruises wrapping around her wrists and ankles or littering her ribs. If it wasn't for the fact that she was still frighteningly thin, she would look exactly the same as the day she was taken.

But Chloe knew that Beca was now a practically a different person. A tremor ran through her hands whenever she was anywhere that wasn't their apartment. Her eyes would glaze over every so often and she would disappear into some kind of waking nightmare. Every sudden or loud noise made her jump as if a gun had just gone off. Whenever they saw parents with their babies, she would go quiet. And every night was filled with nightmares.

Chloe rubbed her eyes with the palm of her hand and stifled her yawn.

But she still didn't sleep.

Chloe had a feeling that tonight would be particularly bad after seeing Jesse face to face.

She wasn't wrong.

Beca had been asleep for about an hour when she woke up, screaming and trying to push Chloe away from her.

"Becs, wake up," Chloe said softly, holding her arms down so she couldn't hit her. Beca's eyes opened but she didn't calm down. It was if she couldn't see her.

Beca was back in that cabin, Jesse was pinning her to the bed with one hand, the other hand was trailing down her exposed stomach.

"Jesse, please," she said, trying to pull away from him.

"It's okay," he said, moving his hand to brush the hair from her face. "I won't hurt you." She could smell the stale beer. "Calm down."

"Jesse, stop!"

"Beca!" Chloe said, letting Beca go. "It's Chloe!"

Beca stared at Chloe for a few seconds before slowly sitting up, putting her head in her hands.

"Sorry," she said.

"It's okay," Chloe said, moving close to her again and kissing her on the side of her head. The hair was stuck to her temples with sweat and her hands were shaking again. She was completely drained and exhausted.

"I didn't mean to wake you. Again," she said, swinging her legs over the edge of the bed, taking a few seconds before she got unsteadily to her feet.

"I was already up," Chloe said, watching as Beca wobbled towards the bathroom, the alcohol had yet to leave her system.

Chloe heard Beca throwing up and her stomach twisted. She put it down to the amount of alcohol Beca had had.

Beca splashed cold water on her face before staring at her pale reflection in the mirror.

"Get it together," she muttered at herself, not loud enough for Chloe to hear.

When she got back to bed she saw that Chloe had gotten her a glass of water and some aspirin.

"Thanks," Beca said, climbing into bed beside Chloe and taking the pills. "How come you were up?"

"I had a feeling you'd have a bad night," Chloe said. "I couldn't sleep."

"You worry about me too much," Beca said, putting her water on the bedside table and lying back down. She was pleased the room had stopped spinning and that her stomach had stopped churning. She remembered why she had never drank much in the past.

"I have good reason to," Chloe said, pulling Beca into her side. "Was your dream the same as usual?"

"Worse," Beca said. "Usually when I wake up it's over. This time he was still there."

"Have you thought about maybe going to see that therapist your dad paid for?" Chloe asked, softly playing with her hair. Beca was quiet for a few seconds.

"I have," she said. "I don't think I'm ready yet. I know that I'll have to talk about it in court soon, I just want to delay it as long as possible. I don't like talking about it."

"I know," Chloe said. "But you know that therapy will help you get better, don't you?"

"Yeah," she said. "I just know it's going to be hard and I'm not ready."

"Remember you don't have to push yourself into anything," Chloe said. She felt Beca nod against her.

"I'm sorry about earlier," Beca said, her hand tracing patterns on Chloe's exposed stomach.

"I told you, you didn't wake me up," Chloe said.

"No, I meant earlier," Beca said. "I don't know why I did that."

Chloe didn't answer straight away, she just shifted their positions so she could see Beca's face. She swept her thumb across Beca's cheekbone.

"I think I do," she said softly. "I think you were trying to take back some control. Jesse took it all from you when... When you were gone. You saw an opportunity to take it back. Make sense?" Beca nodded.

"There's something else," she said, avoiding Chloe's eyes. "Don't laugh at me when I tell you."

"Of course I won't laugh," Chloe said, tilting her head up.

"I was worried that you didn't..." She trailed off, struggling with her words.

"Didn't what?"

"Didn't find me attractive anymore," she said. "I'm not the same person I used to be."

"You're still beautiful, Becs," Chloe said, kissing her. "I find you very, very attractive." Beca smiled, shyly.

"Likewise," she said. She kissed Chloe again before contentedly closing her eyes. "Love you," she mumbled before falling asleep again.

"Love you too," Chloe replied, finally allowing herself to sleep.

* * *

Beca and Chloe slept late the next morning while Stacie helped Aubrey clear up from the night before. She had spent the night and they kept exchanging shy smiles as they threw away bottles and cups.

Stacie picked up the cup Beca had been drinking from. It was still half-full.

"Jesus, what was she drinking?" Stacie said, pulling a face as she dumped the contents into the sink. "I swear that was just pure vodka."

Aubrey sighed slightly. "She's had a lot to deal with," she said. "Frankly, I'm amazed she can even get out of bed. If it was me I'd have gone to pieces."

"Yeah, me too," Stacie said. "We still need to keep an eye on her though. Make sure the drinking thing doesn't become a problem. And it doesn't look like she's eating much."

"I know," Aubrey said. "After Jesse basically starved her for a month, she can only really handle small amounts. Still, the doctor at the hospital said that after a few weeks her portion sizes should be almost back to normal, but she barely eats anything." Aubrey sat on the sofa, satisfied with the tidiness of the room. "I'll have a word with Chloe about it. See if she's noticed anything."

"Did you hear her screaming last night?" Stacie asked after a small silence. Aubrey nodded sadly.

"It's the same almost every night. They're both exhausted."

"I wish I could get at him for this," Stacie said, the sudden aggression in her voice taking Aubrey by surprise. "I wish I could physically hurt him."

"I know," Aubrey said. "I do too."

"Do you think he'll get off?"

"Honestly?" Aubrey asked, her words full of a worry she had not voiced before. "I don't know."


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: LOVE TO YOU ALL!**

**I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters**

* * *

The night before the trial, Beca didn't sleep. She feigned it long enough for Chloe to eventually fall asleep behind her, her arms wrapped around her waist.

She spent the hours until dawn staring at the wall opposite, watching the room get steadily lighter. She knew that in a few hours she would have to go to court and listen to Jesse deny everything he had done to her. She would have to listen to his lies and excuses.

Her eyes itched with tiredness as she glanced at the alarm clock on the bedside table. It was almost 5 am. She knew she wouldn't get any sleep now, so she eased herself out of bed, feeling Chloe's arms involuntarily tighten around her as she tried to move. She managed to untangle herself without waking her up.

She had showered, dressed and made coffee before anyone else had woken up. She sat in the kitchen, her hands shaking as they gripped the mug. Aubrey was up first.

"Morning," she said, towel drying her hair, still in her pyjamas. "You know we're not due in court until 10, right?" Beca nodded. "How are you feeling?"

"Super," Beca replied. Aubrey looked at her. Her make-up had done nothing to disguise the dark circles under her eyes.

"I'm making breakfast, what do you want?" Aubrey asked, pouring herself some coffee.

"I already ate," Beca said.

"No you didn't," Aubrey replied. She had had a conversation with Chloe about Beca's eating and they both agreed to keep an eye on it.

"Then I'm not hungry," Beca said. "But thanks." Aubrey bit back her response and carried on making food. She put half a toasted bagel with cream cheese on a plate in front of Beca. She sighed.

"If you don't eat it, you don't get dessert," Aubrey said. Beca rolled her eyes but couldn't suppress her small grin.

Aubrey left to get dressed and Beca forced herself to eat the tiny portion of food in front of her.

* * *

They were back in the court. Chloe and Aubrey were sitting further back with Beca's dad and Detective Anderson. Beca was sitting up front with Charles Posen. Jesse's lawyer was sitting at a desk to their left. When the court was in session, Jesse would be kept separate from them.

"Ready for this?" Charles asked Beca as he organised his papers.

"Not really," Beca replied.

"Just remember that whatever Jesse says, don't rise to it. Shouting and arguing in court won't win you any favours with this judge," he said. "You'll take the stand tomorrow so you'll have a chance to answer anything he says then."

"Okay," she said, taking a deep breath to steady her nerves. "I never got to thank you for doing this. For representing me for free."

Charles Posen took a moment and surveyed the small girl next to him. He looked at the nervousness in her eyes and the tremor in her hands.

"Has Aubrey ever told you how her mother died?" He asked, his voice still as calm and controlled as it had been a second ago.

"What?" Beca asked, shocked. She turned involuntarily and looked at the blonde girl sitting a few rows behind her. She was deep in conversation with Chloe and didn't notice her looking. "I... I didn't know..." Beca turned back around.

"I'm not surprised," Charles said. "She was quite young when it happened but she still doesn't like talking about it. Aubrey's mother... My wife... She was one of the greatest therapists in the states. One of her patients became obsessed with her. He thought she was in love with him and eventually she was forced to transfer him to another therapist. One night he followed her home and raped and murdered her in an alleyway."

"Oh my god," Beca said, feeling horrified.

"He was not convicted and went free. A month later, he killed again," Charles said.

"Jesus," Beca said, looking back at Aubrey again. "I'm so sorry."

"I won't let another guilty person walk free, Beca."

A few minutes later, the trial began. It started with the judge reading a detailed account of the facts that they knew. After he read the written statement Beca gave to detective Anderson weeks ago.

"Do you still stand by this statement Ms Mitchell?" The judge asked.

"Yes your honour," Beca replied.

"Good. Jesse Swanson will now take the stand," he said.

Jesse was lead into the dock by two policemen, one either side of him. He was still wearing his ill-fitting suit and still looked nervous and frightened. He was playing his part very well.

"Please state your name," Jesse's lawyer said, standing.

"Jesse Swanson," he said, his voice quiet.

The judge then read out a transcript of his first interview with Anderson.

"Do you still stand by this statement Mr. Swanson?"

"No your honour," Jesse replied.

There was a ripple of noise around the courtroom.

"You no longer stand by this statement? You are thereby informing us that you lied during this police interview?" The judge asked, peering over his glasses.

"Yes, that's correct your honour," Jesse said. "I was lying to protect Beca." He looked her in the eyes. "I won't lie any more."

Another smattering of confused mutterings broke out around them as Beca felt the atmosphere change.

"What is he doing?" She whispered to Charles, breaking the eye contact with Jesse.

"I don't know," he replied.

"Very well," said the judge. "Mr. Steiner, you have the floor." He gestured at Jesse's lawyer who stood.

"Jesse," he said, "what was your relationship with Beca Mitchell before she disappeared?"

"She was my girlfriend," Jesse replied.

"What?!" Beca said, without thinking.

"Beca," Charles said in a warning tone of voice.

"Ms Mitchell you will have your chance to speak tomorrow. Please do not interrupt," the judge said.

"She was your girlfriend?" Dave Steiner asked, as if there had been no interruption.

"Yes sir," Jesse said, playing the part of a frightened teenager to perfection. His voice shook and his eyes looked permanently on the verge of tears.

"Did anyone else know about this relationship?" Steiner asked.

"No sir," Jesse replied. "She wanted to keep it a secret. She was afraid of her dad finding out."

"You said in your previous police interview that you didn't know where Beca was the month she was missing. Are you now changing that story?"

"Yes sir," Jesse said. "She was with me. We were hiding out in my dad's old cabin. We were planning on running away together. To L.A.. She always wanted to go there."

"But why have her disappear?" Steiner asked. "Why not just wait until you graduated?"

"Beca hated college," Jesse said. "She never wanted to be there in the first place but her dad made her. She couldn't wait another two years. So we came up with the plan. I would hide Beca at the cabin and carry on like normal. Once everything had blown over, we would leave for L.A."

"So you deny the claims that Beca was held there against her will?"

"Yes sir," Jesse said, his voice cracking slightly. "I love her, I would never hurt her. I thought she loved me too."

Beca couldn't believe what was happening. It felt like all the air had been sucked from the room. She glanced at the jury and saw sympathetic faces looking at Jesse. He was playing them. And they were falling for it.

She had expected him to simply deny everything but this... Creating a whole new story... She hadn't thought he would sink to this level.

"There is DNA evidence that proves you had sex with Beca, do you deny it?" Steiner asked.

"No," Jesse said. "But it was consensual, I didn't rape her."

"And her bruises? Her multiple injuries?" Steiner asked. Beca looked at him. Was it anger she could see in his eyes?

"She's... Beca's, uh, into that kind of thing," Jesse said, his cheeks tinging pink with embarrassment.

"What do you mean?" Steiner asked.

"She... She likes being tied up... Likes being hit," he said.

Beca felt sick. She felt like the world was shifting and titling beneath her.

She could almost feel the anger coming off in waves from Chloe behind her.

"And what about the reports that say she was malnourished when she was found?"

"I couldn't force her to eat, could I?" Jesse asked, looking upset now. "I begged her to. Threatened to take her home if she didn't. But she wouldn't."

"So, if she was at the cabin as your guest, not your prisoner. Why did she run?" Steiner asked.

"I don't know," Jesse said, with a sad sigh. "I guess she changed her mind? I thought we were in it for the long run. I guess I'm an idiot."

A silence settled around the court and Beca glanced at the jury again. This time, some of the women were actually crying.

"No further questions at this time, your honour," Steiner said, taking his seat.

"Mr. Posen, any questions at this time?" The judge asked.

"Not yet, your honour. I wish to present my case first," Charles replied.

"Very well. Court is adjourned. Reconvene tomorrow at ten am."

* * *

Beca barely said a word that night.

As soon as they got home from court, she went into her room and buried herself under the sheets of her bed.

She couldn't believe he was doing this to her. After the hell he put her through, he was now trying to say that everything that had happened was consensual. That Beca had asked to be tied up. Asked to be beaten. Had starved herself.

Chloe tried to come and comfort her several times.

"Chloe," Beca said, her head still buried in her pillow, "please. Just... Not now."

She felt Chloe kiss her on the head before leaving the room.

It was midnight when Beca left her room, heading for Chloe's in order to apologise. She saw Aubrey sitting on the sofa in the living room, a law text-book propped open on her lap. She thought of everything she had learned about Aubrey that day and she made a decision.

She sat on the edge of the sofa, waiting for Aubrey to look up from her book.

"Are you okay?" Aubrey asked eventually.

"No," Beca replied, honestly. "I heard about what happened. From your dad." She saw Aubrey tense. "I'm so sorry, Aubrey."

Aubrey swallowed. "It was a long time ago," she said.

"That doesn't mean it stops hurting," Beca replied.

"How... How old..." Aubrey trailed off. It felt like someone was gripping her throat as she forced herself not to cry.

"I was sixteen, almost seventeen," Beca said. Aubrey nodded in understanding, unable to speak. "If you ever need anyone to talk to..."

"Thank you, Beca," Aubrey said, reaching out and squeezing the smaller girl's hand.

"Any time," Beca said, squeezing back.

She made her way into Chloe's bedroom and crawled in next to her.

"I'm sorry," she said, wrapping her arms around the redhead's waist.

"There's nothing to be sorry for," Chloe replied, taking one of her hands and kissing it before putting it back.


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: ****I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters**

* * *

"Please state your full name," the judge said as Beca took the stand.

"Rebeca Ann Mitchell," she said, sounding as nervous as Jesse had done yesterday. The difference being this wasn't an act. At Charles' request, the court had just been played the recording of Beca's first interview with Anderson, in which she told every detail of what had happened to her at the hands of Jesse. The transcript had been read out the day before but Charles thought hearing Beca say it would have more of an impact.

"Beca, is everything that you said in that recording true?" Charles asked.

"Yes sir," Beca replied.

"Can you describe your relationship with Jesse?"

"He was my friend," Beca said. She tried to avoid looking at him. He was sitting beside his lawyer, two policemen were sitting behind him.

"How did you meet?" Charles asked.

"We worked together at the college radio station and we were both in a cappella groups. Sometimes we would get coffee or watch movies together," Beca said. She couldn't remember what it was like not to fear Jesse, but her heart ached at the thought that she once considered him a close friend.

"During the time that you were friends was there ever anything sexual between you?"

"No sir," Beca said.

"Did Jesse ever hint that he would like to have that kind of relationship with you?" Charles asked.

"No," Beca replied. "I mean, he knew I was gay. It never occurred to me that he'd want a relationship."

"Jesse has also claimed that the injuries you sustained where delivered by him at your request. Is this true?"

"Definitely not," Beca said. Charles Posen began handing out pictures of Beca's injuries to both the jury and the judge. He gave her a look that said keep talking. He had briefed her on what she should say, but she didn't want to. She wanted to forget it, not re-live it. But she trusted that Charles knew what he was doing. "I never asked to have my head smashed into the side of the car. To be thrown into the trunk and driven away. I didn't ask to be tied to a bed for days at a time. To be punched, slapped, choked, if I said something he didn't like. If I cried when he was... when he raped me... he would hit me and turn me over so he wouldn't have to look. I didn't ask for any of that, why would I?"

She could hear muffled sobs coming from the rows of seats towards the back of the courtroom and she saw Aubrey with her arm around Chloe's shoulder. The redhead's face was hidden in her hands. She saw her dad, his jaw clenched, tears in his eyes.

"She's lying!" Jesse suddenly shouted, cutting through the hushed silence. "Beca, why are you doing this to me?!"

"Mr. Swanson," the judge said in the same warning tone he had used on Beca the day before.

"You're going to ruin my whole life!" He said, panicked tears running down his face.

"Mr. Swa-"

"Stop lying Beca! Please, stop lying!"

"Mr. Swanson, that is enough!" The judge shouted, matching his volume. "One more word and you will be removed from this court."

"Sorry your honour," he said, sitting back in his chair. Beca wasn't fooled by this outburst. She looked at the calm, collected expression on Dave Steiner's face and concluded they had planned this. She looked to Charles who shook his head. _Don't respond to him_, the look said.

"Beca, can you tell the court about your first visit to the hospital after they discharged you?"

"I woke up in the middle of the night with a pain in my stomach. I got out of bed and realised I was bleeding," she said before pausing. She had tried not to think about the baby. "At the hospital, they told me I had miscarried. I had been pregnant and the stress of what had happened combined with the fact I had been punched in the stomach and ribs a lot caused me to lose it."

Jesse's face had gone white with shock.

"You... you were pregnant?" He said, forgetting the threat from the judge. She looked him in the eyes and nodded. His eyes dropped to his fists and for a split second a look of genuine remorse flitted across his face.

"Did Jesse ever use a condom, Beca?" Charles asked.

"No," she said.

"So he must have known that pregnancy was possible?"

"I think so, yes," Beca said.

"And he still hit you in the stomach?"

"Yes sir," Beca said.

"No more questions at this time, your honour," Charles said, returning to his seat.

"Mr. Steiner?" The judge said, turning to Jesse's lawyer. "Would you like the floor?"

"Yes your honour," he said, standing. "Beca, is it true that you dislike college?"

"No sir," Beca said. "For the first month or so I didn't really like it, but once I made friends it wasn't so bad."

"And you fully intended on returning to Barden after the summer?"

"Yes," Beca said.

Steiner took a piece of paper from his desk. "I have here a copy of an email that Rebeca Mitchell sent to Jesse, on the 3rd of November. It reads _'dude, college sucks so much. I literally have no time to work on my music because Bellas rehearsals are always.'_. Jesse replied _'tell me about it. We should totally run away and hide from all these dumb responsibilities.'_ Miss Mitchell then replied,_ 'sounds mighty tempting, Jess. I'm game if you are.'_ Do you deny that you sent those emails Miss Mitchell?"

"No," Beca said, looking nervously at Charles. She hadn't expected this at all. "But I was obviously kidding."

Steiner smiled at her before holding up a second piece of paper. "This is a report from one of Beca Mitchell's professors. _'Beca rarely attends class. When she does she never engages with the subject matter and shows a general lack of interest. She is always apathetic and gives off the impression she would rather be anywhere else. At the beginning of the semester, we asked Beca what she hoped to get out of a philosophy degree. Her reply was that she was only doing it to get her dad off her back so she could move to L.A. and be a music producer'._ Does this report sound accurate, Miss Mitchell?"

"Yes," Beca said after a small silence. "I didn't give a crap about that class. But after I joined the Bellas and, as I said before, made some friends, my attitude towards college changed."

"So you don't want to move to L.A. and become a music producer? Is that not still your dream?"

"I don't know any more," Beca said. "The thought of moving to a new city is fucking terrifying to me right now."

"Language, Miss Mitchell," the judge said.

"Sorry," she replied. "I don't know what I want to do in the future because I feel like I don't have one. He took it. I can't even walk down the street alone any more. I can't do anything, I'm constantly afraid."

A moment of panic flashed across Dave Steiner's face. He was losing control of the questioning and needed to regain it.

"Fair enough," he said, holding up his hands. "You may have changed your mind about the move to L.A. but you cannot deny that your change in attitude towards college is a fairly recent thing."

"No, I suppose I can't," Beca said.

Steiner turned to the jury. "Beca doesn't deny her frustration surrounding college. She doesn't deny that she was forced to go there by her father and, at one time or another, wanted to leave for L.A." He turned back to Beca. "Earlier you claimed that those injuries you sustained were a direct result of Jesse Swanson abusing you. You said you would never ask for that kind of pain, correct?"

"Yes," Beca said.

"Miss Mitchell, what happened in the summer between your junior and senior year of high school?" Steiner asked.

Beca's eyes grew wide and she felt her heart drop.

"What?" She said, her voice a cracked whisper.

Steiner smiled again. "I have your medical history here, Beca," he said, holding up a third piece of paper.

Beca looked frantically at Charles.

This couldn't be happening.

"This isn't relevant," she said, tears pooling in her eyes. She saw the blurry figure of her dad and watched as his head dropped into his hands. She blinked back the tears and saw Chloe and Aubrey, staring at her with confusion.

"Oh but it is, Miss Mitchell," Steiner said. "You were hospitalised that summer for a duration of four weeks due to self-inflicted bodily harm and a refusal to eat. Correct?"

Beca was silent for a long time before she nodded.

"You'll need to speak up, Beca," he said.

"Yes," she said, her voice was quiet but was picked up by the microphone in front of her and carried through the court. She heard Chloe give another cry.

She had never told Chloe this.

She had never told anyone this.

Chloe had asked her before about the scars on her thighs but she simply told her that she'd been depressed as a young teenager but that she'd only cut herself on one occasion. She hadn't told her that the truth was she had done it solidly for a month, retracing the same cuts until she one day went too far. The blood loss combined with the fact she had refused to eat in weeks meant that her dad had found her passed out in her room, covered in blood.

"My mom had just died and I'd had to move in with my dad who I hadn't seen since I was six," Beca said, her voice trembling with the effort of trying to hold back the tidal wave of emotion.

"Objection," Charles Posen said, "what does this have to do with the case?"

"Get to the point Mr. Steiner," the judge said.

"Very well, my point is that Miss Mitchell claimed she would never ask for such pain, when we know she has a history of inflicting pain on herself," Steiner said. "Yesterday Jesse said that he couldn't force you to eat. This is something that you have not made a counter claim against. Do you admit to refusing food that Jesse gave you whilst you were hiding together?"

"We weren't hiding together," Beca said, the desperation in her voice was clear. "He held me there against my will!"

"Did you refuse the food Beca?"

"Yes!" She said, surprising everyone, including Jesse and Steiner. "Yes, I refused the food." Jesse and Steiner had assumed she would lie. But Beca hadn't lied yet and she wasn't about to start. She could feel Chloe's eyes piercing her. "I refused the food because I wanted to die."

Pockets of noise burst in the room. She heard Chloe crying again. Heard the gasps and mutterings of the jury. Saw Steiner angrily whispering to Jesse. Charles kept his eyes on Beca. Tell them about it he mouthed.

"At the beginning I ate the food he gave me," Beca said, silencing the muttered conversations. "I thought that if I was ever going to escape, I'd need all the strength I could get. Eventually though, I knew he wouldn't let me escape. So I asked him if he would just kill me. He wouldn't. I couldn't bare the thought that that would be life. I didn't want to be beaten and raped every day for the next however many years I had left. So I took matters into my own hands and just stopped eating. He tried to force me to. But everything he forced into my mouth I would spit out or throw up. Eventually he worked out that he could take away my water and make me drink soup instead. Refusing to drink is so much harder than refusing to eat. I just couldn't do it. So I drank the soup and he had yet another way to control me."

There was silence after Beca had finished speaking.

"Any further questions?" The judge asked, sounding less than professional for the first time since the case had begun.

"No your honour," Steiner said, all his cockiness from earlier had gone.

"Tomorrow both lawyers will have a chance to call up other witnesses. We reconvene at 10 am."

* * *

When they arrived home, Beca took a long shower. She knew she'd be facing a barrage of questions and couldn't face them right now. If she had been shocked at how low Jesse had stooped yesterday, it was nothing to how she felt today.

After almost an hour in the bathroom, she knew she couldn't avoid the situation any more. She walked into the living room to find only Aubrey there.

"She's in her room," Aubrey said, her own eyes slightly red from crying. "Beca, I had no idea about you being in hospital. I'm sorry you had to go through that today."

"Thanks," Beca said before tentatively knocking on Chloe's door.

"Come in," Chloe said, sniffing slightly. Chloe was sitting on the edge of her bed. She didn't look up when Beca came in.

"Are... are you mad at me?" Beca asked, cautiously approaching. Chloe shook her head, still looking down.

"I'm just sad," she said. "Sad at the thought of you giving up. Of... of you asking him to kill you. I can't imagine how horrible it must have been for you in there but this... this has really shocked me."

"I'm sorry," Beca said, sitting down on the bed, keeping a distance between them. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you about when I was in hospital, and I'm sorry that I gave up. It was a living hell, Chlo' and I didn't want to be there any more."

"Don't apologise," she said. "I just need to know, do you feel like that now?"

"What?"

"Do you want to die, Beca?" Chloe looked at her now. There was something in her eyes that Beca had never seen before. It was some fierce look of determination with a hint of something else. Love, maybe. "Because I'm not going to let you do that."

"No," Beca said, surprised.

"You aren't eating," Chloe said. "Don't think we haven't noticed."

"Okay, maybe I need help with the eating, but I don't want to die, Chloe. I was in a different mind then. I hadn't seen the sun for weeks. I had no concept of time. All I knew was that every time I woke up it was to be beaten or raped. I thought that was how the rest of my life was going to play out and I wanted it shortened," Beca said, taking Chloe's hand, desperate for her to understand. "But now? Now I have my life back. I have freedom and safety. I have you. I don't want that to end. Yeah I'm scared but I still want to live."

Chloe gave a tear filled laugh before pulling her into a hug.

"If that ever changes, you promise you'll tell me. I'm never letting you go, Beca Mitchell. Understand?"

"Yeah," Beca said, closing her eyes and smiling. "I understand."


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: Thanks for everyone who's reviewed/followed/favourited so far and thank you to all reading as well. You lot are awesome.**

**Feel free to review and message me on here or come and find me on tumblr and say hello! (username: massivedrickhead)**

**I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters**

* * *

That night neither girl could sleep so they stayed up talking. Chloe's fingers traced along the scars on the top of Beca's thighs.

"Have you done it since?" Chloe asked, her head resting on Beca's shoulder.

"No," Beca said, her hand running through Chloe's hair. "I thought about it when I first started here. But only for the first month or so, you and the other Bellas really helped. It's such a slippery slope, I didn't want to go down that road again."

"I'm proud of you," Chloe said after a small silence.

"For what?" Beca asked.

"Everything," she said. "You've been through so much and you just keep going. You're amazing."

"I'm not," Beca said, grinning. "I've given up before and coming back from that is hard. Like, crazy hard. It's easier to just keep it together. It takes twice as long to put yourself back together as it does to fall apart."

"You're fucking incredible," Chloe lifted her head from her shoulder and kissed Beca. "And don't think I missed that Hunger Games quote you just pulled out of nowhere."

"Damn it, I was trying to sound deep," Beca said, pulling Chloe in for another kiss.

"You sounded very deep," Chloe said, giggling. "Very wise."

"I'm full of wisdom," Beca said, smirking, bringing their lips together again.

"We should get some sleep," Chloe said when they finally broke apart.

"I'd rather keep doing this," Beca said, her voice a little less confident than it had been. The sooner they went to sleep, Beca thought, the sooner she would have to go back to court.

"I know you don't want to go back there," Chloe said, reading her mind, "but this could all be over tomorrow."

"Do you think he'll get off?" Beca asked.

"No way," Chloe said, sounding more confident than she felt.

* * *

"Please state your name," Charles Posen said the next day in court. He had already had Chloe recount Jesse's assault on her and had now moved on to the police officer who had found Beca in the woods that day.

"Police Officer Brian Williams," he said, shifting in the seat that was slightly too small for him. He gave Beca a small smile which she returned. She remembered him. He was probably about 6ft and built like a giant but when he turned her over in the woods and carried her he handled her like she was a small child.

"Can you tell us what happened the day Beca Mitchell was found?"

"Yes sir," Brian said. "Our search for Beca Mitchell had moved into the areas surrounding Barden. In the weeks before we had searched most of the woods and found nothing. That day I saw what looked like a young woman running past me."

"How would you describe her running?"

"It was like she was running from someone. I've never seen anything like it. She fell and I watched her struggling to get up. When she couldn't she started crawling. As I got closer to her, she started panicking. She was pulling herself along the ground. Along stones and sticks. Once I turned her over, I saw that it was Beca," Brian said. "She seemed terrified at first until she realised that I wasn't Jesse-"

"Objection!"

"Fine!" Brian bit back. "When she realised that I wasn't whoever she was running from, better? She asked me to help her. I called for an ambulance and then carried her out of the woods. She passed out before I got her to the paramedics."

"Can you describe her appearance, Officer Williams?" Charles asked.

"She was wearing a t-shirt and a pair of underwear. Nothing else, not even shoes. There were deep cuts in her legs. I'd hazard a guess they were from broken glass-"

"Objection!" Steiner said. He had looked pale and worried all morning. "How did you know they were from broken glass?"

"I've seen that kind of injury before, sir," Brian said, his jaw slightly clenched. "Her feet were cut up from running and her arms and legs were also heavily bruised and she was extremely thin. When I picked her up, she weighed no more than a child."

"Thank you, officer. No more questions your honour," Charles said.

"Steiner, any questions?" The judge asked.

"No your honour," Steiner said. He looked nervous and annoyed but it was nothing to the look of pure fury he was getting from Jesse.

Charles then called the doctor who had treated Beca when she was admitted. The doctor described Beca's injuries and her mental state whilst at the hospital.

"She wouldn't speak to anyone. Any loud noise or sudden movement would make her jump," the doctor said. "When Jesse was allowed in to visit her, Beca began screaming and pulling away. When he didn't leave, she began hyperventilating. This happened again when he tried to force his way into her room."

"In your professional opinion, what was the cause of Beca's injuries and mental state?" Charles asked.

"There is no doubt in my mind that Beca has been a victim of sexual and physical assault," the doctor said.

"Are there any more questions or any more witnesses to call?" The judge asked.

"No your honour," Charles said, turning to give Beca a smile.

"No your honour," Steiner said, turning to give Jesse a shake of the head.

"The jury will now retire to make their decision. We will not reconvene until a unanimous decision has been made," the judge said.

* * *

Aubrey and Charles sat slightly apart from Beca and Chloe as they waited for the verdict. They were pouring over notes together.

"I've never seen them this close," Chloe said, smiling as she linked their hands together. "How are you feeling?"

"I just want it to be over," Beca said, feeling sick. "I want to leave this court and never think about him again."

"Me too," Chloe said, squeezing her hand.

They sat waiting for another hour and a half before they had news. Charles lightly touched Beca on her shoulder.

"It's time," he said.

They all returned to their places in the courtroom and waited. Beca's hands were shaking again. She was sure she was about to throw up at any minute. She stole a glance at Jesse. He looked nervous. His eyes were brimming with tears and he chewing his bottom lip.

"All rise for the verdict."

They all stood.

"Have you reached a unanimous verdict?" The judge asked a member of the jury

"Yes your honour," she said.

Beca held her breath. It felt like her legs were about to give out on her.

"We find the defendant guilty."

A cry from the back of the courtroom rang out. Jesse's mother was crying hysterically, clinging to her husband.

Beca sank into her chair as relief began washing over her in waves.

"Thank you," she said in a quiet voice as Charles placed his hand on her shoulder. "Thank you so much. I'll never be able to repay you for this."

"You can repay me by going out there and enjoying your life," he said.

She watched as a crying Jesse was lead away, back into prison.

"He'll be sentenced next week," Charles said.

Once the court was dismissed, Beca left the court and found herself surrounded by a hoard of reporters and photographers.

"We have no comment at this time," Charles said, leading clearing a way through the crowd. Once they were out of the court, they were joined by Chloe, Aubrey and her dad. Chloe wasted no times in throwing her arms around Beca.

"It's over," she said, squeezing her as tight as she could. "Beca, it's over."

Beca gripped her back, crying as the reality of the situation really set in.

She was free.

She was safe.

She had won.


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: So a couple of things before you get to read the next chapter (unless you just ignore my author's notes and go right onto the fic. I wouldn't blame you. They're quite rambling) **

**1) for those wondering, this fic is far from over. I have a few more things planned for it so don't worry, I won't be wrapping up yet!**

**2) It turns out that this fic has the most reviews I've ever had which is awesome and made me super happy. So thank you to everyone reviewing, y'all are amazing!**

**3) I hate to bring up my tumblr again but I'm only 5 followers away from reaching 100 so if you have a tumblr but aren't following massivedrickhead yet then pretty please do and also send me messages and shiz letting me know what you like and what you don't like :D **

**Blergh, sorry for all the shameless self-promotion. Now, enjoy some fluff!**

**I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters.**

* * *

"I'm not going out," Chloe said, resolutely folding her arms as she sat on the edge of the bed.

"Yes you are," Beca said, tossing her her dress that had been hung up on the back of the door.

"I'm not leaving you in the apartment by yourself," she said, catching the dress and tossing it behind her. "You could come out with us?"

"Chlo' my face has been on the news for the past, what, two months? Everyone knows I'm under 21," Beca said. "And anyway, I don't think I'm ready for all that. The crowds and the music, it'll all be a bit much I think."

"Then let me stay in with you!" Chloe said.

"It's your birthday, and you should go out and party with your friends," Beca said.

"I don't want to celebrate my birthday without you," Chloe said, un-crossing her arms and taking Beca's hands.

"We can celebrate when you get home," Beca said, kissing the back of them. Chloe still looked unhappy. "Please, Chlo'. You love going out and you haven't done it in ages. Please just go out and enjoy your birthday. For me?"

Before Chloe could respond, the buzzer for the door went. Beca jumped, as usual, before rolling her eyes, frustrated at herself.

"I'll get that, you get dressed," Beca said, kissing her on the forehead before she left.

Chloe sighed, before she started getting dressed. She really didn't feel like going out. The idea of leaving Beca alone while they all went out to get drunk felt wrong. But Beca had organised everything for her, not wanting the redhead to spend her 21st birthday just staying in the apartment, watching TV.

So, reluctantly, Chloe had agreed.

Just as she finished the final touches to her make-up, Beca came back into the room.

"Wow," she said, taking in Chloe's appearance. "You look hot."

"Thanks," Chloe said, giving Beca a twirl.

"I mean, you look hot in sweatpants. But this... Wow..."

Chloe laughed. Since Jesse had been found guilty a few days ago, Beca had started seeming more and more like her old self. She was still nervous and jumpy and still had pretty bad nightmares. But she was also making jokes again, laughing more easily, more willing to be by herself.

"You're a dork," Chloe said. "But I love you."

"I love you too," Beca said. "Now come on, they're waiting." Beca took Chloe's hand and lead her from the room.

As Chloe left the bedroom and walked into the living room, she was hit by a shout of "surprise!"

All of the Bellas were in the living room which had been transformed with balloons and streamers. There was a big bowl of some lethal alcoholic concoction created by Fat Amy, a couple of pizzas and ice buckets filled with every other kind of alcohol imaginable.

Chloe turned in shock to see Beca smirking at her. She hit the smaller girl in the arm before pulling her into a hug.

"Happy Birthday," Beca said, her lips tickling Chloe's ear.

"You did all this?" Chloe asked.

"You're still going out later, but I thought a little party here first wouldn't be a bad idea," Beca said as they ended their hug.

"It's a brilliant idea," Chloe said, almost squealing. "Thank you!"

"I didn't do it alone," Beca said, gesturing at the rest of the Bellas. "It was lucky you sulked for so long really so they could get everything ready."

They all spent the rest of the evening laughing, drinking and talking about nothing. It was the closest Beca had felt to being a normal 18-year-old girl in a long time.

Beca was watching the party, smiling contentedly as she sat in the corner of the sofa. Chloe was doing shots with Fat Amy and Lily while Aubrey was talking about grad-schools with Cynthia-Rose.

Stacie took the opportunity to join Beca on the sofa and check up on her.

"How are you doing?" She asked, handing her another beer. Beca was only just finishing her first beer, not wanting to get drunk.

"Really good," Beca said after a small pause.

"Yeah?" Stacie asked as she felt her heart expand at the genuine smile on her friend's face.

"Yeah," Beca said. "I have a long way to go, but now I know that he's definitely going to jail, it doesn't seem so hard."

"I'm really glad," Stacie said. "The way you've handled everything... You've just been amazing, Becs. I'm so proud of you."

"That's the alcohol talking," Beca said, feeling embarrassed as tears threatened to creep into her eyes.

"It isn't," Stacie said.

The party carried on well past midnight until Beca pointed out that if they were going out, they should probably leave soon. There was a mumbling of agreement from her drunk friends as they started getting their things together.

"Becaaaaa," Chloe said, dropping onto the sofa beside her. "Becaaaa."

"You're so graceful," Beca said, chuckling as she helped Chloe sit up.

"Beca have you had some pizza?" She asked, looking around her.

"I have," Beca said.

"Have some more," she said, taking a slice from one of the boxes and handing it to her.

"Maybe later," Beca said, still laughing, as she put it back.

Chloe pouted slightly. "Promise me that you've had some pizza."

"I promise," Beca said, lowering her voice. "I had two slices."

"Pinky promise," Chloe said. "You can't lie when you make a pinky promise."

"What happens if you lie?" Beca asked, smirking slightly.

"Uh, God dies. I think... I don't know, but you can't lie and you can't break them," Chloe said, holding out her pinky finger.

"I pinky promise that I ate two slices of pizza," Beca said, linking their pinkies together. Chloe's face broke into a smile. "Now, are you going out, or are you too drunk?"

"I'm not drunk," Chloe said. "But I'm not going out either."

"Why not?" Beca asked.

"Because I want to spend the rest of my night with you," she said, kissing her.

Beca caught Aubrey's eye and the blonde winked at her before laughing. They all said their goodbyes before filing out of the apartment.

"Okay, why don't you get ready for bed, while I tidy up?" Beca asked. She got no reply so she turned around to find Chloe already asleep on the sofa. "And you call me a lightweight." She got a bottle of water out of the fridge and half carried her girlfriend to the bedroom. "Chlo'?" She said, sitting her on the edge of her bed. "I need you to do something for me?"

"What is it?" Chloe asked, forcing herself awake.

"Can you drink some of this water?" Beca asked, handing her the bottle. Chloe nodded and drank half the bottle as Beca eased her out of her dress.

"Don't take advantage," Chloe said, grinning as Beca helped her into a t-shirt.

"I won't," Beca said, kissing her. She helped Chloe into bed and the redhead was asleep in seconds. Beca kissed her forehead before cleaning up the mess in the living room and kitchen. She switched the TV on to distract her from the silence.

Once everything was tidy, she went to switch off the TV so she could go to bed. Just before she hit the button, she saw Jesse's face on the screen. She almost screamed but managed to keep it together. It was just the news summarising the case and soon she saw her own face. She shut the TV off and pushed it from her mind. It had shaken her though, seeing his face staring back at her, as if he could see her there.

_He can't hurt you._

She took a deep breath to calm her nerves and went into Chloe's room.

As soon as she crawled into her bed, Chloe turned and curled herself into her side. Beca grinned, pulling her closer.

"Thank you for my party," she said, still sounding a little drunk, her eyes still closed.

"You're welcome," Beca said. "I'm sorry you didn't get to go out."

"I got to spend my birthday with you," she said. "That's all I wanted." Beca kissed her on the top of the head.

Just as she began to drift off, Chloe said something else.

"I want to spend the rest of my life with you."

"I do too," Beca said, feeling Chloe squeeze her tighter as a smile spread across her face.


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N: I LOVE YOU I LOVE YOU I LOVE YOU ALL!**

**I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters**

* * *

"Beca, did you hear what he just said?" Chloe asked, as the judge called for the court to be cleared and Jesse was lead off again. The cries of his mother were filling the room, and Chloe was tugging at her arm. "Beca?"

"Fifteen years," Beca said, standing. "No chance of parole."

"Are you okay?" Chloe asked, worried. Beca's voice was scarily calm.

"Yeah," Beca said. "Let's get out of here."

As they walked through the courthouse towards Chloe's car, Beca ignored the shouts of reporters. Chloe kept giving nervous looks to Aubrey. They reached the parking lot but before they could drive away from the place, hopefully for the last time, there was a shout from the courthouse entrance.

"Hey!" It was Jesse's mother, and she was power-walking towards them.

"Beca, get in the car," Chloe said, pushing Beca behind her.

"My son is going to jail because of you!" She shouted, getting closer to them. "I ought to kill you!"

Before any of the girls could say another word, she had pushed Chloe aside with ease, causing her to hit the ground. She then grabbed the front Beca's jacket and slammed her into the side of the car.

"You ruined his life!" She yelled, tears streaming down her face.

"He ruined mine!" Beca shouted, matching her volume. Aubrey took off to find a police officer and Chloe scrambled to her feet and began trying to pull her away from Beca. "Fifteen years! He took everything from me and he got fifteen fucking years! How is that justice?!"

"He didn't do anything!" She said, now being restrained by the police. "You're just a little slut who cried rape."

"You know what, if it helps you sleep at night then you keep telling yourself that," Beca said. "And in fifteen years time, you get your son back. Why don't you come and find me then and see if I've forgotten what he did to me." She tried to push away but the woman was stronger, and she slammed Beca back into the car with such force it knocked the air from her lungs. The anger in Beca's eyes was replaced by fear in a split second as the woman who was holding her against the car turned into Jesse.

He was pinning her to the car with a look of pure hatred on his face. He pushed her back again and began using his knee to force apart her legs.

"Let her go," Chloe, said, aware that Beca was about to have a full blown panic attack. "Fucking let her go!"

His mother released Beca who slid down the car, her breathing quick and erratic. Beca tried to move backwards, as if she was trying to crawl away from someone, but she hit the car again.

"Beca," Chloe said, crouching in front of her, "Beca, look at me."

"He's here," she managed to choke out. "Chloe, he's here."

"He's not, sweetie," Chloe said, taking Beca's hands. "I promise you he can't hurt you anymore." She ignored the sounds of scuffling and shouting as Jesse's mother was restrained and taken away, and focused on getting Beca to breathe normally. "You're okay."

As her breathing slowed down, she nodded before she started crying. Chloe pulled her into her arms.

"Okay," Chloe said softly, her hand stroking up and down her back. "Aubrey, help me get her out of here."

Aubrey helped Beca to her feet and Chloe got her into the car.

"'Bree, can you drive?" Chloe said. "Deep breaths, okay Becs?" Beca nodded. "I can't believe she did that."

"I can't believe he only got fifteen years," Beca said, shaking her head.

"Fifteen to life, Beca. No chance of parole. No getting out for good behaviour. And in fifteen years time they could still send him back to prison," Aubrey said.

"And they could also let him out," Beca said.

"I know. It's bullshit," Aubrey said.

"Damn right," Chloe agreed, reaching across to squeeze Beca's hand.

"But it could all be a lot worse," Aubrey finished.

"Yeah, I know," Beca said.

* * *

That night, Chloe woke up to find Beca sitting cross-legged at the end of the bed, her laptop perched on her legs.

"What are you doing?" Chloe asked, rubbing her eyes.

"Nothing," she said. "Go back to sleep."

"Are you looking at other colleges?" Chloe asked, glancing at her screen as she scooted behind Beca, her hands resting on her back. Beca winced. "What is it?"

"Nothing," Beca said as she closed the lid of her laptop before putting it on the floor. Chloe slid Beca's t-shirt up her back.

"Holy shit," she said softly. There was a bruise on her back from where it had hit the handle of the car door. "Does it hurt?" She asked, her fingers lightly brushing over it.

"Not really," Beca said, reaching behind her for Chloe's hands before wrapping them around her waist. Beca had had more bruises than she could count, this was just another in a long list.

"What's going on?"

"I got an email earlier saying that, surprise surprise, I didn't pass this year," she said, running a hand through her hair. "But they said that, given the circumstances, I can resit the year. I can even chose a whole new major."

"But you're not sure you want to?" Chloe asked, trying to keep the shake from her voice.

"I don't know," Beca said. "This place is full of things that remind me of him. But I also love it here. I mean, if you were staying after you graduated, I might feel different-"

"Beca, I'm staying here," Chloe said, trying not to sound too eager.

"What?"

"I'm staying in Barden for grad school. I mean, I need to pass all my exams first, but if I do, then I'm staying. But... But if you don't feel like you can stay here, we'll work something out," Chloe said, kissing her on the side of the head.

"What do I do?" Beca asked, turning around so she could change their position and rest her head on Chloe's chest.

"You just need to think about what you want," Chloe said.

"I want you," Beca replied, without a second of hesitation. "And I want to stick around for the Bellas. I just... I can't forget about what he did to me."

"No one is expecting you too," Chloe said.

"Barden is full of him, and I don't know if I can deal with it anymore."

"Maybe it's time to think about going to that therapist," Chloe said. "Jesse's in jail. He's going to be in jail for a long, long time. He can't hurt you again. So now it's time to start repairing the damage he did. And I know you don't want to, but that means talking about it, with a professional. Things will get easier, I promise."

Beca was quiet for a while, as she traced patterns along Chloe's stomach. "I wish I could turn back time. I wish I could make it so I never got in his car that night."

"So do I," Chloe said.

"I'll talk to my dad in the morning and get the number for that therapist," Beca said. "I hope I don't have to leave here."

"So do I," Chloe said, again. "But whatever you decide, I'll support you. I'll be here."


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: Massive amounts of love to you all!**

**I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters**

* * *

Beca toyed with the pancakes on her plate, cutting little bits off with her fork and arranging them into a face. Her expression suggested that her head was somewhere else.

After two weeks of phone calls and scheduling, Beca was about to have her first session of therapy, and she was understandably nervous.

"Becs," Chloe said, snapping her out of her head. "You gotta eat something." Beca looked down at her plate, seemingly surprised at what she had done. She started slowly eating the food, aware of Chloe and Aubrey trying not to watch her.

Half way through, she was pretty full, but she pushed herself to eat a little more, before putting the fork onto the plate and finishing her coffee.

"Ready to go?" Chloe asked, picking up her car keys from the kitchen counter. Beca nodded, taking a few deep breaths to steady her nerves.

"Good luck, Beca," Aubrey said, clearing away the left-over food.

"Thanks," Beca said, finding her voice.

Chloe didn't say anything as they drove to Dr. Richards' office, but she kept glancing over at Beca. The brunette was staring out the window and chewing her nails. They had both been pleasantly surprised to find that Dr. Richards was a woman. Beca wasn't sure she could sit in a room alone with a man she didn't know. The relief had ebbed away to be replaced by anxiety as the day of their first meeting drew closer.

"You're gonna be fine," Chloe said as they pulled into the parking lot. "Just text me when you're done and I'll come and pick you up." Chloe leaned across to give her a quick kiss before Beca climbed out of the car and headed into the building. She watched long after the doors had closed behind her girlfriend, her hands drumming nervously on the steering-wheel.

Beca sat in the waiting room, her hands clenched in her lap as her leg shook slightly.

"Beca Mitchell?" The receptionist asked into the room. As Beca stood, several heads whipped round to look at her as a look of dawning realisation filled their faces.

"I thought I recognised her," one woman whispered to her friend. Beca rolled her eyes slightly as she followed the receptionist to Dr. Richards' office.

"Beca Mitchell for you, doctor," she said, showing Beca into the room.

"Good afternoon Beca," Dr. Richards said. "Take a seat." Beca sat in a squashy armchair that faced Dr. Richards' own chair. Dr. Richards was a woman who looked to be in either her late thirties or early forties. She had blonde hair that was tied in a neat ponytail and she was wearing a dark grey suit. "How are you feeling?"

"Nervous," Beca said, deciding that lying during her sessions would be pointless. The nail of her index finger began absentmindedly scratching against the corner of her thumb, picking at a piece of loose skin.

"Well that's too be expected," she said. "By the way, you can call me Julia. The whole Dr. Richards thing makes me feel old."

Beca nodded her understanding but still didn't look up. Her eyes were fixed on the frayed rug that sat beneath the glass coffee-table.

"I've been reading up on you. I have your initial police statement and your medical records. I also have transcripts from everything that happened in court. So I know everything that's happened to you. You don't have to tell me any of the facts, because I have them. What I don't have, is how you felt, how you feel now, and the mental impact this has had on you," Julia said, watching Beca who had yet to engage.

"I said how I was feeling in court," she said, her voice quiet.

"Not about everything," Julia said. "And not in much detail. All I'm saying is that I won't be asking you questions that makes you repeat the facts. Of course, if you feel the need to talk about these things then please do. I'll be asking questions that look at things that weren't covered by the trial or in police reports."

"Like what?" Beca asked, looking up for the first time.

"Like how many times a night do you wake up from a nightmare?"

Beca hesitated. "Three or four," she said.

"The report said you have nightmares. It didn't say their frequency or what they're about. So these will be the things I'll be looking at," she said.

Again, Beca nodded her understanding.

"When will I be back to normal?" Beca asked after a small pause.

"What's normal?" Julia asked.

"Not being afraid of everything. Not having nightmares every night. Not freaking out every time I leave the house, or hear a noise, or have someone other than my friends touch me. Not having flashbacks and panic attacks almost every day. I just want all that to stop," Beca said. The loose skin on her thumb had started bleeding, but she didn't stop scratching at it.

"These things take time. Starting therapy is a step in the right direction. As soon as we, for want of a better word, "diagnose" you," she said, using air-quotes, "we can figure out what kind of therapy and what kind of medication might work best with you. I can't promise that you'll go back to being 100% how you used to. But you will get better."

* * *

Chloe had done nothing but pace the apartment since she had returned from dropping Beca off. Aubrey had tried to get her to relax but she couldn't.

"What if it isn't going well?" Chloe said, perching on the arm of the sofa for a few seconds before she stood again to pace.

"Dr. Richards is a very highly regarded therapist, I'm sure it's all going fine," Aubrey said, briefly looking up from her textbook. Aubrey had gotten her grades in the post a few days ago, followed by a letter confirming her place at a law school in New York. She had already started reading the textbooks on the reading list.

Chloe was still waiting to hear about her results, and whether or not she'd be able to attend Barden University so she could carry on studying to become a teacher. She tried to put it out of her mind so she could focus on Beca, but it was still sitting there, niggling away at her.

Her phone buzzed in her pocket, informing her that Beca was ready to be picked up.

She returned home with the tiny brunette around half an hour later, carrying a bag of take-out for dinner.

"How did it go?" Aubrey asked, as Beca dropped onto the sofa while Chloe dished out their food.

"Her initial impression is she thinks I have PTSD," Beca said. "And in other news, the sky is blue." Beca shook her head slightly "I mean, I could have told her that. But she said she can't be sure until we've had a few more sessions."

"Does she have a plan to treat it?" Aubrey asked, unsurprised by Beca's diagnosis.

"Psycho therapy and possibly some anti-anxiety meds or antidepressants," Beca said. "She seems nice, though. The session wasn't as bad as I thought it would be."

"When do you go back?" Chloe asked, handing Beca a plate with some fries and a couple of pieces of fried chicken on it.

"Friday," Beca said, taking a small bite out of the chicken. "She wants to meet twice a week."

"I'm really glad it went well," Chloe said, sitting beside her, and draping the brunette's legs over her lap. "And I'm really proud of you for going."

"Thanks," Beca said. "I'm kinda proud of me too."


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N: Bit of a short one for you, let me know what you think :)**

**I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters**

* * *

Jesse sat in the visitor's room, staring at the empty seat in front of him. The room was filled with other convicts talking to their friends and family, each pairing accompanied by an armed guard, each con cuffed to their chair.

Jesse drummed the fingers of his free hand on the table in front of him. Soon, he saw his mother walking towards him. She was given a quick pat down before she took the seat opposite him.

"Sorry I'm late," she said, not meeting his eye.

"It's fine," Jesse replied.

"How are you?" She asked, glancing up to take in his appearance. He had a couple of new bruises since she'd seen him in court, almost three weeks ago.

"Awesome," he said, his voice laced with sarcasm.

"I had a thing with Beca," she said, "on the day you were sentenced."

Jesse's eyes snapped up. "What did you do?"

"I wanted her to know what she'd done to this family. What she'd done to you. So... So I yelled at her. Pushed her against a car. Then she started having a panic attack," she said.

"She was faking it, obviously," Jesse said, annoyed. "You saw her in court, she's a good actress."

"I don't know, Jesse," she said. "It didn't seem like she was faking to me."

"So what are you saying?" Jesse said, his temper rising. "You're saying you believe her?"

"Jesse, when you turned up at our house that day, bruised and dirty and stinking of petrol... You'd set fire to the cabin, hadn't you? You tried to cover your tracks."

"I can't believe you're saying this," he said. "I'm your son."

"My son wouldn't have done the things you did to that girl," she said, tears streaming down her face. "For god's sake Jesse, I thought I'd raised you better than that."

"Do you think you're a good mother? Really?" he said, his voice low and full of venom. "All those fucking mood swings. Pushing dad around. It's no wonder-"

"No wonder what?" She said, her voice just as harsh. "No wonder you beat and raped a girl you'd abducted?"

"If you don't believe me... If you believe that lying bitch... Then you should go. And I don't want to see you again," Jesse said, struggling to keep his voice calm. The officer by their table gave them a warning look.

"I'm sorry Jesse," she said, standing up. "I love you."

"Who pissed in your cornflakes?" His cell-mate Tony asked when he returned to his cell, furious.

"My mom is a stupid bitch," Jesse said, before explaining what had happened.

"Dude, why are you still trying to play this whole innocence thing? Like, everyone knows you did it, and shouting about what a lying bitch Beca is isn't going to get you out of here quicker," Tony said.

"I _am_ innocent," Jesse said, his jaw clenched.

"Shut the fuck up," Tony sighed. "Even your mom doesn't believe you anymore. So why don't you stop whining, and start thinking of a way to get back at her for telling."

"What do you mean?" Jesse asked, stopping his pacing to look at him.

Tony smiled at him, patting the spot on the bed beside him. "Say there was a way we could help each other out here. Would you be interested?"

* * *

"Chloe, just open the damn letter," Aubrey said, exasperated. Chloe turned the letter over in her hands again. Inside the envelope, was a sheet of paper that let her know her final grades for the year. It would let her know if she could stay on at Barden to do her teacher training.

"Chlo', the suspense is killing me," Beca said.

Slowly, Chloe slipped the envelope open and slid the letter out. Beca and Aubrey watched, their breaths held in anticipation as Chloe's eyes scanned the paper.

"I passed," she said, breathing a sigh of relief and finally smiling. "And my grade is high enough for me to stay at Barden." Beca and Aubrey cheered and her tiny girlfriend squeezed her into a hug and kissed her.

"I'm so proud of you," Beca said, grinning.

"Well done Chloe," Aubrey said, hugging her best friend. "We need to celebrate. Shall we go out for dinner tonight? I can invite Stacie."

"Ooo, double date!" Chloe said, excitedly. Both girls turned to Beca, expectant looks on their faces. "Feel up to it?"

"Absolutely," Beca said, honestly. "Let's do it."

* * *

Jesse sat in the TV room, his leg jumping up and down as he watched the other men file in.

He spotted who he was looking for, a 6ft monster named Frankie. He had a shaved head and tattoos covered almost every inch of him.

Jesse waited, watching him. Eventually Frankie left the room and Jesse let out a mental sigh of relief when he wasn't followed by his friends. Jesse waited a few seconds before following him, down the corridor, towards his cell.

He passed Tony along the way who gave him a nod and slipped something into his hand.

Jesse followed Frankie into his room, rolling up his sleeved.

"This is from Tony," he said, deepening his voice, before stabbing him again and again in the back, targeting his kidneys.

Frankie cried out in agony and turned, swiping at Jesse, but he was already gone, leaving Frankie to bleed out in his cell.

He went to the showers and washed the blood from his hands and arms.

He shook with adrenaline and a feeling of power he hadn't felt in a while. It reminded him of how he felt when he had Beca to do as he wanted with. He closed his eyes, letting the cool water wash down his back. Soon, he'd have her back. He'd carried out his end of the deal. Even if Frankie survived, Tony still owed him.

* * *

Beca linked her hands with Chloe's under the table as they waited for their dessert. Her thumb ran across Chloe's knuckles as she listened to Stacie's story.

Chloe smiled, squeezing Beca's hand.

As Aubrey and Stacie broke off into their own conversation, Chloe turned to Beca, giving her a kiss on the cheek.

"You doing okay?" She asked, quietly. Beca nodded.

"I was a bit anxious when we got here but I feel okay now. I feel good, actually," Beca said.

"Good," Chloe said, squeezing her hand again.

"I'm going to stay in Barden," Beca said. "I've decided. I'm going to major in music tech."

"For serious?" Chloe asked. "Are you sure?"

"I'm sure," Beca said. "I want to be with you. And I want to be in Barden. I love you."

"I love you too," Chloe said, kissing her.

"You guys are gross," Aubrey said, smirking at them.

"Shut up, they're adorable," Stacie said, playfully hitting her arm. They spent the rest of the night talking and joking, Jesse far from their minds.

* * *

**A/N: Another Author's Note! Just wanted to add that it's probably not very realistic that Jesse was able to shiv someone and go take a shower without getting caught but, hey, it's fiction so we can bend the truth a little :P**


	22. Chapter 22

**A/N: I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters**

* * *

Jesse was pacing his cell again, furiously clenching and unclenching his fist. It had been almost three weeks since his attack on Frankie, who had died a day later in intensive care. Jesse had been suspected, but because they had no proof he did it, he was free to go, but was warned that at his parole hearing in fifteen years that this would stand against him.

Jesse didn't care about that anymore. He just needed Tony to carry out his end of their deal. As far as he saw it, Tony owed him big, and after three weeks, Jesse was getting impatient.

Tony returned to their cell and groaned when he saw Jesse was pacing again.

"Dude, chill out," he said, climbing onto his bunk and pulling out a book. Jesse took the book from him and threw it across the room.

"You owe me, Tony," he said.

"And I said I'd tell you when it was time," Tony said, picking up his book and returning to the bunk. "It's not time yet."

"It's been three fucking weeks. How long am I supposed to wait?" Jesse said, annoyed at Tony's complete lack of fear.

"It's not like you're running out of time here, Jesse. You're barely two months into a fifteen year sentence. You've got time to kill," Tony said. "Just be patient."

"This is bullshit," Jesse said, stopping his pacing and climbing up onto the top bunk.

"I've never met anyone so eager to get a shiv in their side," Tony said, lying back on his bed.

* * *

"You wanna go out today?" Beca asked one morning two weeks later, rolling over onto her stomach, her head propped up on her hands.

"Sure," Chloe said, grinning as she brushed the hair from Beca's face. "Where do you wanna go?"

"We could go for a picnic or-" her suggestion was cut off by a clap of thunder from outside which she barely flinched at. "Or not."

"Yeah, something tells me that going outside today might not be an option," Chloe said as rain began hammering against the window. "So how about instead we watch some crappy movies, eat a bunch of junk food, and if it clears up, we can go for a walk?" Chloe asked.

"Sounds perfect," Beca said, leaning forward to kiss her girlfriend.

They took their blankets from the bed and piled them onto the sofa, after they grabbed as much junk food as they could carry. They were taking full advantage of the fact that Aubrey was in New York with her dad, visiting her new law school. It was uncharacteristically cold considering it was the height of summer. They snuggled into each other, and Chloe browsed Netflix until she found a movie she wanted to watch. Beca always let her chose considering she was totally indifferent.

"Have you taken your meds?" Chloe asked before she hit play.

"Sure have," Beca said, resting her head against Chloe's shoulder. Chloe kissed the top of her head before pressing play.

Since her first session with Dr. Richards, Beca had improved dramatically. The antidepressants she was taking were beginning to improve her anxiety and mood, and the therapy was helping with her flashbacks, nightmares, and even her eating. Compared to how she felt after Jesse was sentenced, she was beginning to feel a lot less afraid and a lot happier.

Several movies and a lot of Doritos and cookies later, Beca sat up and stretched.

"Dude, I can't sit here anymore. I need to go outside," she said.

"Yeah, me too," Chloe agreed. "Let's walk into town and pick up some actual food for dinner."

They washed and dressed before pulling on coats and shoes and leaving the apartment.

It was still drizzling out, but it wasn't cold anymore, and they spent the twenty minute journey to town, talking about nothing.

Chloe could barely feel the shake in her hand as she squeezed it, smiling.

"So Stacie is staying in Barden, right?" Beca asked as they walked back from the Chinese take-out place.

"I think so, yeah," Chloe said.

"Is she and Aubrey going to do the long-distance thing?" She asked.

"I don't know," Chloe said, a little sadly. "I know Aubrey definitely wants to, but she's worried it's not what Stacie wants. You know how paranoid she is, she doesn't want to push Stacie away by talking about it."

"From what I've heard from Stacie, she wants to too. But because Aubrey hasn't talked to her much about it, she thinks she's trying to distance herself so she can break it off," Beca said, relaying the information she'd gotten from her friend the last time they'd spoken.

"They need to sort that out," Chloe said.

"Definitely," Beca replied. "We'll force them to sit down and talk it out when Aubrey gets back next week."

"Good idea," Chloe said. "It's going to be so weird not having Aubrey around when she leaves."

"It really is," Beca agreed. "The Bellas without her is going to be so different. Oh, shoot, I meant to ask you, are you still gonna be in the Bellas? I mean, I know you will have technically graduated, but you'll still be in Barden, and you'll still be in college."

"I'm not sure of the rules," Chloe said. "I think it's just undergrads, but I'll double check. Even if I can't perform with you guys, I'll still be at every rehearsal I can get to to help you all out. If you want me to, that is."

"Are you kidding? Of course I'll want you there! If it wasn't for you bursting into my shower like the weirdo you are, I'd never have even auditioned. God knows what I'd have been like if I hadn't joined up," Beca said, shaking her head slightly. "It's so weird that all of this," she gestured at their linked hands, "and the Bellas and everything, all of that is because you wanted to see me naked."

"I didn't want to see you naked!" Chloe said, hitting her tiny girlfriend in the arm. Beca raised her eyebrow. "Okay, I did. But that wasn't why I burst in there."

"Sure," Beca said, smirking.

* * *

The next morning, Jesse was in his cell, building a house out of the playing cards he'd taken from the TV room. Since his attack on Frankie, most of the other inmates kept their distance from him.

Tony walked in, smiling.

"It's time," he said, holding a shiv in his hand.

Jesse's face broke into a grin.

"You remember the plan?" Tony asked. Jesse nodded. "You remember which number you have to call?" Jesse nodded again. "Okay, here it goes."

* * *

Beca was walking back from therapy, her nerves a little on edge. In her last session, Dr. Richards had set her the challenge of walking back from therapy alone. She had gotten five minutes down the road, panicked, and called Chloe.

This time, she was determined to be able to do it. But she had a bad feeling. Her hands were shaking worse than they had in weeks, and she could feel her heart hammering against her chest.

Her breathing began to calm down as she got within five minutes of the apartment. Her phone buzzed in her pocket.

She had a text from Chloe.

Seeing her name on the screen seemed to lessen the tightness in her chest. She opened the text and saw that it was a picture message. It took a second to load, and when it did, the phone slid from Beca's hands. Panic and fear flooded every inch of her. She crouched down and picked up the now cracked phone.

On the screen was a photo of Chloe, lying with a pool of blood soaking into the carpet behind her head. Her eyes closed.

Beca started running.


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N: Man the reaction to that last chapter was perfection. You're all amazing.**

**I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters**

* * *

_**Jesse climbed out of the ambulance, hastily bandaging the wound in his side, which was still slowly oozing blood. He was relieved to find that he knew where he was, and he knew how to get back to Barden. He didn't bother calling Tony's contact, he didn't need any extra complications. He thought about stealing the ambulance to drive there, but it wasn't the most inconspicuous thing.**_

_**So he walked. The thought of getting back to Beca pushed him on. He just hoped he'd reach her before anyone realised he was missing.**_

_**He was more angry with her than he had ever been at another person, but he couldn't deny that he wanted her. He imagined having her again and he smiled. Her hair tangled in his hands. The taste of her lips.**_

_**He hadn't decided where he would take her yet. His plan was to get Chloe's car and then ditch it when he came across a new one.**_

_**He was excited. Really excited.**_

_**Finally, he reached Beca's apartment, and he followed a man into the building, shutting the door behind him.**_

_**After ascending the stairs, he knocked on her door, his hands shaking with excitement.**_

_**He was going to enjoy this.**_

_**Chloe opened the door and the smile she had dropped.**_

_**"Hey, Chloe, I'm here to see my girlfriend."**_

_**She tried to scream but he pushed her back into the room, shutting the door behind them. He pulled out his gun.**_

_**"Where is she?"**_

_**"She's not here," Chloe said, her voice shaking. She felt the kind of fear she'd never felt before. "Jesse, how are you even here?"**_

_**"Took a shiv in the side and killed a couple of paramedics and a cop. Pretty simple really. Where is she?"**_

_**"I'm not going to tell you," Chloe said. "You can do what you like to me. You can kill me. I'm not giving her to you."**_

_**"Urgh, you're such a pain in the ass," he said, groaning.**_

_**"I love her. And I won't let you hurt her again," Chloe said, closing her eyes in resignation.**_

_**Jesse groaned again, before pushing Chloe to the ground, and knocking her unconscious with the butt of his gun. Blood pooled from the gash in her head, but it didn't bleed for long.**_

_**"I'd kill you now," he said, removing her phone from her pocket and turning her over. "But I need a bargaining chip for when I get her here." He snapped a picture of her, and sent it to Beca, before finding a place to hide.**_

_**He heard her burst into the room a lot sooner than he thought.**_

* * *

"What the fuck do you mean Jesse Swanson's escaped?" Detective Anderson said, staring in utter disbelief at the sheepish police officer who had been given the job of delivering the news. "What happened?"

"He got stabbed in prison, and on the ambulance ride to the hospital we assume he took the shiv out of his side and used it to stab the cop escorting him. Once he was dead-"

"He died?!"

"Yes sir, Swanson severed the artery. Once he was dead, Swanson took his firearm and shot and killed the two paramedics. We don't know where he is now, sir."

"I know exactly where he'll be," Anderson said. "For fucks sake, has Beca been notified?"

"No sir."

"You've got to be fucking kidding me. You two," he pointed at Denis and Jose, the two police officers responsible for arresting Jesse, "in the car right now. You're taking me to Beca's apartment. It's a damn good job I know the security code for that building."

* * *

Beca ran into the apartment. Somewhere in the multitude of thoughts that were screaming to be heard in her head, was the thought that she should have phoned the police. But she hadn't. She just knew she had to get to Chloe as soon as possible.

She didn't know how, but she knew Jesse was responsible

Chloe was in the living room, still lying in the same position.

Beca ran over and crouched by her. She was breathing. With a shaking hand, she felt for a pulse and almost cried with relief when she found one.

"Chloe, please wake up," she said, her voice catching in her throat as tears rolled down her face. She wiped the blood from the side of her face.

"I've missed you, Beca," Jesse's voice said from behind her. Beca didn't have time to react, a second later he had dragged her from the floor, his arm locking under her chin, around her neck. "We've got a lot of catching up to do."

Beca clawed at his arm, and kicked his legs.

She couldn't speak.

She couldn't breathe.

The only thought she had was that her last moments would be spent like this. She thought if she was really lucky, he'd kill her. But she had a feeling that that wasn't his intention.

She felt him kiss the side of her head, as he tightened his arm around her neck. Blackness had begun creeping into her vision and the fight started leaving her.

"I'm really not happy with all that shit you said in court, Beca," he said. "And I'm pretty sure I said if you said anything, to anyone, that I would kill Chloe." He aimed his gun at the unconscious redhead.

"No," Beca managed to croak.

Jesse lowered his gun with a laugh. "As long as you co-operate, Chloe doesn't have to die."

He tightened his arm even more, and he felt Beca stop struggling.

"Let her go, Jesse," a voice came from the door. Jesse turned around, taking Beca with him. She saw Detective Anderson standing there, his gun aimed at Jesse.

Jesse loosened his arm and Beca sucked the air into her lungs. Her head was spinning and the room seemed to be tilting around her.

Before Anderson could speak again, Jesse had aimed his gun, and fired a single shot, straight into Anderson's head.

Beca cried out in despair as she watched her last hope crumple to the ground, dead.

"There's no getting away from this, Beca," he said, as she started fighting against him again. He thought about just knocking her out again, but he liked watching her pointlessly struggle.

"Fuck you!" She cried, filled with a fury she hadn't felt in a while. "I hate you, Jesse!"

Her elbow collided with his side and he audibly winced.

She paused, before throwing her arm back again, putting all her strength into hitting him.

He cried out as her arm connected with his stab wound, and he involuntarily let her go. She dropped to the ground and scrambled to grab Anderson's gun.

"Don't be fucking stupid, Beca," he said, sounding angry for the first time.

Jesse grabbed her legs but she kicked against him, her fingertips brushing against the cool metal of the gun. She took it just as he grabbed and turned her over.

She aimed the gun.

He aimed his.

Two shots rang out, nano-seconds apart.


	24. Chapter 24

**A/N: You're all the greatest people in the world! Thank you for the crazy number of reviews the last two chapters got :D**

**I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters**

* * *

When they heard the first gunshot echo from the apartment building, Officers Dennis Jordan and Josie Roberts scrambled out of their car, and ran into the building. Josie rattled off the apartment address into her radio.

"Shots fired, repeat, shots fired."

They were met with a tidal wave of people, all rushing to get out of the building. They were still fighting to get through when they heard the next two shots go off with in seconds of each other.

"This is bad, Dennis," Josie said, as they managed to clear a way up the staircase.

"Way to state to the obvious," Dennis said, trying to mask his fear with the joke.

They eventually reached the door, unsure what they were about to find inside.

"Barden Police!" Dennis shouted as he pushed the door open.

Needless to say, they weren't prepared for what they saw.

"Beca," Josie said, softly. The brunette span around, a gun still in her hand. Blood had soaked the sleeve of her right arm, and was still dripping from the end of her hand. She was taking short, sharp breaths and her eyes were glassy with tears. The bullet that had left Jesse's gun had grazed her arm, causing a lot of blood, but not much damage. "Beca," she said again, "put the gun down."

Beca looked surprised to see that she was still holding it, and let it fall from her hand. Josie's attention then fell on the figure she was standing over.

Jesse was lying on the ground, blinking rapidly as blood spurted from a gaping wound in his throat. His lips moved but no sound came out.

"Why won't he die?" Beca said, her voice quiet and hoarse but full of venom.

"Call for an ambulance, Josie," Dennis said, crouching over Chloe.

Josie didn't move. Her eyes fixed on Jesse.

"Just wait," she said, in a calm voice. Dennis stood up with a huff of frustration, he took a throw from the sofa and went to try and stem the bleed in Jesse's neck. Josie grabbed his arm and pulled him back. "Just wait," she said again.

"Josie, you can't be serious," he said.

Jesse gave a final cough, and he was gone.

"I don't know what you're talking about, he was dead when we got here," Josie said, turning to look at Beca. "Okay?" Beca nodded. "Let me see your arm." Again, Beca seemed to be surprised to find that she was injured. She held up her arm and Josie slowly tried to ease her shirt from her shoulder. Beca let out a hiss of pain. "Sorry," Josie said, softly. "You're going to need some stitches, but it looks worse that it is." She took a cloth from the kitchen and wrapped it tightly around the wound.

It was then saw Detective Anderson and bit back her cry. She had worked with the detective a number of times and was fond of him.

"Jesse shot him," Beca said, following Josie's gaze. "I'm sorry."

"This isn't your fault," Josie said, a slight shake in her voice. She picked up her radio. "Officer down, repeat officer down. Ambulance required. Two dead, two injured."

Beca had made her way over to Chloe, and knelt by her again. She was beginning to feel dizzy from the blood loss and now the adrenaline had begun ebbing away, pain and fatigue had started seeping in.

Josie watched as she gently stroked the hair from her face and kissed her forehead.

She started saying things in a quiet voice that Josie could barely hear.

"Chlo', I need your help," she said, her voice breaking. "I'm really scared."

If Chloe could hear, she didn't respond.

* * *

Chloe woke up feeling sick and confused. She opened her eyes and immediately shut them as she was hit with the piercing bright light.

She opened them again, this time slower, and the light seemed to have dimmed. She looked around her, but didn't see anyone she recognised.

"How are you feeling?" A woman who she presumed was a nurse, asked.

"What's going on?" Chloe asked, trying to piece together what she could remember.

"You've got a pretty nasty head injury and a concussion," the nurse said. Chloe closed her eyes, trying to think.

Then she remembered.

Her eyes snapped open.

"Jesse!" She said, sitting up too quick and being hit by a wave of dizziness.

"It's okay," the nurse said, easing her back down. "Take it easy."

"No, you don't understand," Chloe said, panicked tears of frustration spilling down her cheeks. "He's back. He got out of prison and he came back for Beca."

"It's okay," the nurse said again. "Beca is fine and Jesse... Well, Jesse is dead."

Chloe let out a cry of relief and covered her face with her hands.

"Where is she?" Chloe asked, composing herself.

"She's with the doctor," the nurse said.

"Why? What did he do to her?" Chloe struggled to sit up again.

"Just calm down, Chloe," the nurse said. "She was shot in the altercation with Jesse and needs stitches in her ar-"

"She was shot?!"

"It looked at lot worse than it was. She needs some stitches in her arm but she's going to be fine. I'll have them bring her in as soon as they've finished with her. Also, your parents have been called and they're travelling down," she said.

o0o

Beca sat silently as the doctor stitched her arm. He was surprised that she didn't flinch once. He'd offered her some painkillers which she refused.

She didn't want to sleep, she knew the nightmares would be horrendous, and the pain was keeping her awake.

Stacie was sitting beside her and kept sniffing and wiping her eyes.

"I'm okay, Stace," Beca said, her voice drained of emotion.

"I can't believe this happened," Stacie said, "I just can't believe it." Stacie had arrived at the hospital in a frantic mess, on the phone to Aubrey who was currently flying back from New York with her dad. She had burst into Beca's cubicle and immediately started crying at the sight of her friend covered in blood, looking beyond exhausted.

A nurse came into the room.

"Your friend is awake," she said to Beca. Beca's eyes shot up.

"Can I see her?"

"Once your arm is stitched up," the doctor said.

"Stacie, can you go make sure she's okay?" Beca said.

"I'm not leaving you."

"Please, she's by herself, she must be freaked out," Beca pleaded.

"Fine," Stacie said, leaving the room.

She found Chloe sitting up in bed, her knees pulled up to her chest. She looked small and afraid and completely unlike Chloe.

"Hey," Stacie said, softly.

"Hi Stace," Chloe said, her voice breaking slightly. "Is she okay?"

"Physically she's fine," Stacie said, coming to sit by her bed. "But she obviously exhausted. How are you doing?"

"I'm okay," Chloe said. "My head hurts."

It was almost night when Beca finally entered the room. Chloe couldn't stop the sob that escaped her. Beca stood at the door, her harm heavily bandaged, dried blood all over her arms, hands and jeans, a deep red mark around her neck which was already beginning to bruise, and her eyes full of exhaustion and clouded with tears. Chloe opened her arms and Beca didn't hesitate in running forward and wrapping her arms around her, as she felt Chloe do the same.

"I'll give you some time," Stacie said, leaving them alone in the room.

"I'm so sorry," Beca kept whispering, as she closed her eyes and buried herself into her. Chloe couldn't respond, she was crying too hard as she gripped Beca's back, holding her tighter than she'd ever held her.

"I thought I'd lost you again," Chloe said, eventually calming down enough to speak.

"I thought I'd lost _you_," Beca said. "I'm so sorry he hurt you."

"Stop apologising for this," Chloe said, holding Beca up in front of her so she could look into her eyes. "_He_ did this. Not you." Beca nodded, taking deep breaths so she wouldn't start crying again. Chloe moved over in her bed and patted the space beside her. Beca looked down at her blood covered clothes and hands.

"I should wash up first," she said. Chloe took her hand and squeezed it.

"No," she said. "I'm not letting you out of my sight again."

"Okay," Beca said, allowing herself a small smile. She kicked off her shoes and climbed onto the bed beside Chloe. She put her arm around her shoulders, and Chloe rested her head on her chest.

"Tell me what happened," Chloe said, her voice betraying how tired she was.

"Not tonight," Beca said. "You need to go to sleep."

Chloe didn't argue. She knew Beca probably wasn't ready to say what had happened, and Chloe herself wasn't sure she was ready to hear it. There'd be time for all that soon. For now, she had everything she needed, and she allowed herself to drift off to the sound of Beca's heartbeat.

Beca didn't sleep. She just stared at the wall ahead and watched it get steadily darker. A couple of nurses had come in to check up on them, but Beca shook her head, hoping they'd understand not to wake her. They did. When Stacie came in with Aubrey, she feigned sleep and listened to their low conversation.

"I can't fucking believe this," Aubrey said. "How could they have let him escape like that?"

"I know," Stacie said. "After all the progress she's made... After everything that's happened... At least he's gone now. For good." She heard Aubrey sigh.

"She's going to have to speak to the police tomorrow. Give them a statement. Dad doesn't think she'll have to go to court or anything, I mean, it was pretty clearly self-defence," Aubrey said. They were silent for a few minutes, Beca felt them watching her. It was so hard not to fall into the comfort of sleep as she lay there, if they didn't leave soon, she'd either have to speak to them, or give in and sleep.

"How was New York?" Stacie asked.

"I missed you," Aubrey replied.

"I missed you too, but that's not really an answer," Stacie said, a hint of a smile in her voice.

"Let's go and get some coffee and leave these two to sleep," Aubrey said. Beca heard the sound of scraping chairs, followed by footsteps and the door closing almost silently.

She opened her eyes again.

They itched with tiredness and she wanted to cry again, but she kept on staring ahead, until her eyes closed of their own accord and she was pulled into a, mercifully, dreamless sleep.


	25. Chapter 25

**A/N: I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters**

* * *

Tony stretched out on the bunk of his cell. He hadn't been given a new cell-mate yet and was enjoying the time he had to himself.

A police officer knocked on his cell door before entering and sitting on the seat opposite.

"Evening officer," Tony said.

"Thought you might be interested to know, Jesse Swanson's dead," the officer said, studying Tony's face for a reaction.

The corners of Tony's mouth tugged upwards. "Shame," he said.

"Thought you also might want to know that he killed four people before he died," the officer said. Tony frowned now.

"Who?" Tony asked.

"The cop who escorted him, two paramedics, and a detective. He almost killed Beca Mitchell and her friend, but she managed to shoot him first," he said. "Look, Tony, I don't know what kind of games you think you're playing, but this is the second time one of your cell-mates has escaped and gotten killed on the outside. Only this time, four innocent people were killed, and a girl who's spent the last couple of months trying to recover has just suffered a major setback."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Tony said, his face free of expression.

"Sure you don't," the officer said, standing and leaving the cell.

Tony frowned. He had seriously underestimated that Swanson kid.

He should have realised after he not only survived, but came out unscathed with his encounter with Frankie. Frankie should have been able to beat him to a pulp.

He couldn't pretend that he felt guilt over the death of the cop or the detective, but he did feel bad that two paramedics had died and that Beca and her girlfriend had suffered again.

He should never have gotten that far.

Jesse should have been pretty close to death when he shivved him as part of the "plan". But he seemed pretty much unhurt.

He also wasn't supposed to kill anyone, he was meant to steal the cop's gun and then call his contact on the outside. His contact would have beaten him half to death and then dropped him outside the prison. Tony surmised that Jesse had figured out not to trust his contact and go it alone.

_Oh well,_ Tony thought, _he's dead now. Burning in hell. Where he belongs._

He smiled to himself as he carried on reading. He hoped his next cell-mate would be a rapist too.

* * *

"As you know, we're trying to piece together what happened on the day that Detective Anderson and Jesse Swanson were killed, can you tell us how you were involved?" Harry Jones, an investigator Josie had never met before, asked. He seemed relatively inexperienced and a little nervous.

"My partner Dennis Jordan and I were instructed to drive Detective Anderson to Beca Mitchell's apartment. We had just been notified of Jesse's escape, and Anderson assumed that's where he would head first," Josie said. Harry looked down at his notepad. So far, her story matched Dennis'. "When we arrived, he asked us to wait in the patrol car while he went inside to warn Beca."

"Why did he ask you to stay behind?" Harry asked. "Surely he knew Swanson was armed and had already murdered three people."

"He didn't think Jesse had made it this far yet. There had been no reports of stolen vehicles and Jesse hadn't take the ambulance, so he assumed he was walking. He thought it would have taken him longer, considering his injuries," Josie said. "He asked us to wait and watch for when Jesse showed up."

"But Swanson was already at the location?"

"Yes sir," Josie said.

"What happened next?"

"We heard what we assumed was a gunshot a few minutes after Detective Anderson entered the building. We went into the building but had to fight against the rest of the residents who were trying to escape. As we climbed the stairs we heard an additional two shots," Josie said. "We entered the apartment and saw Beca Mitchell standing over a man who matched Jesse's description. Beca had what seemed to be a gunshot injury to her right arm, which was bleeding heavily. Her girlfriend Chloe Beale was unconscious and Detective Anderson was... he was dead, sir."

Harry looked down at his notes again, so far there were no discrepancies.

"Was Swanson alive or dead?" Harry asked.

"He was dead when we arrived at the scene," Josie said, without hesitation. "Beca Mitchell informed us that he had shot Anderson, and we assumed she had shot Jesse, and he had shot her, in the struggle. She received an injury to the arm, he was shot through the neck."

"Okay, thank you Officer Roberts, that will be all," Harry said, satisfied with her statement.

"Thank you, sir," she said.

* * *

Beca had finally showered and changed her clothes. She scrubbed furiously to get the dried blood from her hands and arms. She washed her face several times until she finally felt clean. She remembered the spray of Jesse's warm blood splattering against her face, and she cleaned it three more times.

She had just given her statement to the police, telling them how she had watched Jesse kill Anderson, and how she had managed to get the fallen detective's gun and had fired. She asked if she would have to go back to court, or even serve jail time. They told her probably not. It was self defence. No jury would convict her.

She had been discharged from the hospital, but because Chloe had a concussion, she had to stay for another few days.

Beca slowly approached her room, where she was now sitting with both her parents. Beca hadn't met them yet.

"Come here," Chloe said, holding out her hand for Beca to take. Beca looked cautiously at the two redheaded parents, who were both smiling warmly, before taking her hand and sitting in the free seat beside her. "Beca, this is my mom and dad. Lillian and Jeffrey Beale. Mom, dad, this is Beca, my girlfriend."

Beca shook hands with them both, hoping they weren't huggers like Chloe was. She sensed that Lillian was, but she seemed to be restraining herself. She held Chloe's hand again, and Chloe squeezed it, reassuringly."

"Nice to finally meet you Beca," she said, her eyes twinkling the same way Chloe's did.

"Yeah, same," Beca said, clearly nervous. She didn't understand why they were smiling at her. _Why are they being so nice when it's because of me their daughter was almost killed?_ she thought. "I'm sorry... About what happened... I'm sorry Chloe was hurt," she said, her hand involuntarily tightening around Chloe's.

"Beca, that wasn't your fault," Chloe said with an almost frustrated sigh.

"Of course it wasn't your fault, dear," Lillian said. "That... that evil... It was _his_ doing."

"But if it wasn't for me, she wouldn't have gotten caught in the cross-fire," Beca said, her eyes landing on Jeffrey, who had yet to say anything.

"Why is it," he said, his voice much softer than Beca had expected, "that the victims will always blame themselves, and the guilty never will?" He didn't expect an answer, he just let the question hang. "We're very glad you're dating our daughter, Beca. You seem to care about her a great deal. From what we've heard, you ran to her aid, even though you knew Jesse would be there, waiting for you. That shows how much you care."

Beca nodded, tears in her eyes. "I do care," she said. "I love her."

"Then that's all that matters," he said.

After a few hours, Chloe's parent's returned to their hotel, and Beca and Chloe had some time together before Aubrey came to pick her up.

Beca wanted to spend the night in the hospital with Chloe, but her doctor wouldn't permit it, so she was staying with Stacie and Aubrey at the apartment Stacie shared with Fat Amy. Aubrey, Beca and Chloe's apartment was still considered a crime scene, so they couldn't go back. The investigator Harry Jones had permitted them to take some of their clothes out. Beca had waited outside, not wanting to be inside there.

"How are you?" Beca asked Chloe, the tips of her fingers tracing lightly across her forehead.

"Fine," Chloe said, "I wish I could get out of here."

"Just a couple more days," Beca said.

"How are you? And don't say fine, because I know you're not," Chloe said, studying her girlfriend's face. Considering how she'd been 48 hours ago, when they were lounging together in the living room, watching TV, Beca was, understandably, drastically different.

"I don't know," Beca said, frowning. "I feel weird. Things haven't really sunk in yet."

"Yeah, I know what you mean," Chloe said.

"I called Dr. Richards, I'm going to see her next week. I think you should come with me," Beca said.

"That's not a bad idea," Chloe said. She shifted over in the bed and Beca climbed in beside her again, replicating their pose from the night before, with her arm around Chloe's shoulders, Chloe's head on her chest. "Becs," she said after a while.

"Yeah?"

"I don't want to go back into that apartment," she said.

"No," Beca agreed. "Neither do I."

"We can get a smaller place, since it'll just be the two of us. And my mom and dad said they'd help out with money," Chloe said.

Beca opened her mouth to object but Chloe cut her off.

"My parents have money, and they want to help us. You can pay them back when you're a famous music producer," she said. Beca smiled.

"Okay," she said.


	26. Chapter 26

**A/N: So we're reaching the end of this fic now :( (maybe two or three chapters left). The response has been overwhelming. I've never had so many reviews for a fic, and the response via tumblr has been amazing too. I'll do a proper A/N when I finish about how much I love you all, for now, here's chapter 26.**

**I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters.**

* * *

_**Beca fired and a second later she felt pain rip through her arm as she was hit with warm blood.**_

_**Jesse staggered slightly, a look of pure shock on his face. He fell forward, onto Beca, who pushed him back. He landed on his back with a thud.**_

_**He was gasping and choking as blood spurted from the hole in his neck.**_

_**Beca saw his lips move, so she crouched over him, putting her ear to his mouth.**_

_**"Help me," he whispered. She straightened up before shaking her head.**_

_**"No," she said. "I want you to die."**_

_**The choking sounds grew louder as the blood carried on spurting and trickling out. He fixed his eyes on her, and she matched his stare.**_

Beca opened her eyes slowly as she pulled herself from the recurring dream. She climbed out of bed and sat on the edge, rubbing her eyes.

She was lying in the bed of Stacie and Fat Amy's spare room. The room had been inhabited by Cynthia-Rose, but she had moved in with her girlfriend a few weeks ago.

She was tired and she missed sleeping with Chloe beside her.

Chloe could always somehow tell when she'd had a nightmare.

She left the bedroom, heading for the kitchen and suddenly found herself back in her old apartment.

Blood had sprayed up the walls and soaked into the carpets.

She turned her head and looked at the room she had just left.

It was the room in the cabin he'd held her in.

She didn't freak out. She just closed her eyes, and counted to ten in her head. When she opened them, she was back in Stacie's apartment.

It was the third time this had happened.

"Becs? Are you okay?" Stacie asked from her doorway.

"Yeah," Beca said, her voice tired and unhappy. "Just getting some water."

Stacie still hovered by her door, unsure whether to believe her.

"You can go back to bed, I'm alright," Beca said.

She still didn't move.

"Are_ you_ okay, Stace?" Beca asked, watching her.

"I'm worried about you," Stacie said.

"Yeah, I'd be worried about me too," Beca said with a small smirk. "But I'm okay. Honestly. Just tired."

"If you need anything, or if you have a nightmare or something, just come and wake me, okay?" Stacie said.

"Sure," Beca said, knowing she never would.

She drank her water and went back to bed, crawling under the covers, hoping the night would pass quickly so she could be reunited with Chloe again.

* * *

The next morning, Beca met up with her dad for coffee before going to get Chloe from hospital.

"How's it going?" He asked, taking in her appearance. She shrugged.

"I'll feel better once Chloe and I are in our new place and we can finally start moving on," she said.

"Look, I know Chloe's parents are helping you guys out with money, and I want to help too. I've been more than useless to you since this whole thing started, since you were born, actually, and I want to do something," he said, reaching into his inside jacket pocket.

"Dad, you don't have to," Beca said.

"I know," he replied. He handed Beca a cheque. "But I want to."

She looked at the cheque.

"Dad... I can't... You can't give me this..."

"I can, and I am," he said. "Save it up for when you've finished college, and you can use it move to L.A. or on a new place, or even so you can take some time off after college and work on your music, instead of having to go right into a job."

"It's too much-"

"It isn't enough, Beca. After everything you've been through, and how little I've done... You deserve a lot more."

"Dad... I don't know what to say," she said, feeling genuine emotion for the first time in days.

"You say 'thank you dad' and then you come over here and I can give you the hug I know you need," he said.

"Thanks dad," she said, her voice breaking slightly as she moved to sit beside him, allowing him to wrap his arms around her. He kissed the top of her head and she buried herself into him. As she hugged him, she felt the safety she had been missing since she was a kid.

She vaguely remembered walking into her parents' room as a five-year-old, tears streaming down her face. It was the middle of the night, and she dragged her favourite teddy bear with her.

She had had a nightmare, and her dad had scooped her up, squeezing her in his arms. He carried her downstairs and he put in the video tape of her favourtie movie. She rested her head on his chest as they lay on the sofa and watched it. She felt safe and secure.

She realised that the next time he had held her properly after that was twelve years later when her mom died. She hadn't felt so safe then.

"Things are going to be okay," he said

Once they broke apart, Beca thanked him again before going to get Chloe.

She arrived at the hospital $20,000 richer.

When she got into her room, Chloe was sitting on the edge of her bed, fully dressed, as the doctor talked her through things she should look out for over the next few days.

She smiled at Beca when she came into the room.

* * *

That night, Beca and Chloe lay wrapped in each others arms, relieved to be back together.

"Have you had any nightmares?" Beca asked Chloe.

"Nothing yet," Chloe said. "You?"

"Just me killing Jesse," she said. "It's the same one over and over."

"You know you had no choice, right?" Chloe said. "You shouldn't feel guilty about what happened. He would have killed us both."

"I know," Beca said. "And I don't feel guilty. I don't really feel anything. I'm not scared anymore. I kind of feel numb. I guess that'll wear off eventually. I'll ask Dr. Richards."

"Good idea," Chloe said.

"Hey Chlo'?" Beca said after a small silence.

"Yeah?" Chloe asked.

"You know I love you, right?"

"I love you too," Chloe said, smiling.

"And... And you know I want to spend the rest of my life with you?" Beca said.

"I do, and it's what I want too," Chloe said. "What's brought all this one?"

"I just keep thinking to how close I was to losing you. I mean, he just shot Anderson without a seconds hesitation. And he'd have done it to you too, I'm sure of it," Beca said, holding Chloe tighter.

"I know," Chloe said. She hadn't told Beca what had happened when Jesse arrived at the apartment, and she had no intention of doing so. She knew Beca would never forgive her for attempting to sacrifice herself like that. "But he didn't. And now he's gone. And we can spend the rest of our lives not having to worry about him."

"Yeah," Beca said, her voice relaxing slightly. They lay in silence for a few more minutes, just holding each other, as Beca worked up the courage to speak again. "Chloe," Beca said. "Chloe Beale. Will you marry me?"

She felt Chloe freeze against her for a second.

"Yes," she said.


	27. Chapter 27

**A/N: So I've planned it out and there are two more chapters after this one.**

**I love you all, please keep reviewing and letting me know what you like and what you don't like (it's the only way I'll get better :) )**

**P.S. This is officially my longest fic!**

**I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters**

* * *

"You will?" Beca asked, sitting up to look at her.

"Are you crazy? Of course I will," Chloe said, sitting up too. She cupped Beca's face with her hands, her thumbs brushing across the light bruising on her neck. She kissed her.

"I don't have a ring or anything," Beca said, once they broke apart. "But I'll get one."

"You don't need to spend money on a ring, Becs," Chloe said, grinning at her. "I mean, I know you're loaded now," she winked at her, "but I'm sure that's not what your dad had in mind when he gave you the money."

"But you deserve a ring," Beca said, chewing her lip as she thought. Then her eyes lit up as her face broke out into a smile. She climbed out of bed and went the pile of her clothes on the floor. She dug around in her jean's pockets until her hand closed around the ring she usually wore on her thumb. "Until I can get you something with a diamond on," she said, climbing back onto the bed and sitting by Chloe, "this will have to do."

She took her left had and slid the ring onto her ring finger. Thankfully, it fit.

Chloe looked at her, grinning. All the stress of the past few days seemed to melt away, and she could see the tension draining away from Beca, too.

This was really happening. Their future together was really happening.

"I love you so much," Chloe said.

"I love you too."

* * *

The next morning the two girls were eating breakfast with Aubrey, Stacie and Fat Amy.

"Chloe, why are you wearing a ring?" Aubrey asked, sipping her coffee, her eyes narrowed as she looked down at her friend's hand.

"Beca gave it to me," Chloe said, smiling.

"Yeah, but why are you wearing it on that finger? You know that's where you're supposed to put engagement rings, righ-" she suddenly stopped as her hand flew to her mouth. "Oh my god," she said. "You're not... She didn't... Are you?"

Beca smirked. "She is. I did. We are."

Stacie squealed before throwing her arms around them both and squeezing them, followed by Aubrey.

"Wait, what did I miss?" Fat Amy asked, confused.

"Beca proposed last night," Chloe said.

"Ohhhh," Amy said. "_Ohhhh_! Congrats shorty and shorter!"

"Thanks Amy," Beca said, before frowning. "Wait, which is which?"

"Well you're shorter, obviously," Chloe said, winking. "Which makes me shorty."

"Again with the height jokes," Beca said, rolling her eyes but smiling all the same.

"So, how did this come about?" Stacie asked Beca in a lower voice, while Chloe filled Aubrey and Amy in.

"I don't know. We were lying in bed and I was just thinking about how scared and angry I was when Jesse hurt her, and how the thought of being apart from her killed me. And I just knew I had to do it. So I did," Beca said.

"Just like that?" Stacie asked, chewing her lip slightly.

"Just like that," Beca said. She watched the way Stacie looked at Aubrey. "If you don't say something before it's too late, you'll regret it. Things can change so quickly. Trust me, I know."

Stacie nodded. She walked over to Aubrey and took her hand, leading her away from the table.

The other girls could just make out what they were saying, though they pretended not to be listening.

"I know we haven't talked about it yet," Stacie said, looking at their hands, rather than at Aubrey's face. "But I love you. And even if you're in New York and I'm here, I want us to be together." She looked up at Aubrey. "I'm crazy about you. I didn't say before now because I was scared, but I realised there was nothing to be afraid of. I love you and I want us to work."

"I love you too," Aubrey said. It was the first time they had exchanged these three words, and it felt like something was ballooning in her chest, making her feel lighter. "And I want to be with you. New York is only a two hour flight away, and we can call and Skype. We can make this work."

Stacie pulled her into a bruising kiss.

Beca waited a few seconds before saying, "Hallelujah!"

* * *

Jesse's funeral happened a week later.

Beca didn't attend, and neither did anyone she knew, including people who had once called Jesse a friend.

That afternoon, Beca and Chloe were allowed back into their apartment, although they intended on doing was packing up their stuff and going back to Stacie's while they waited to move into their new place.

Beca's hand never left Chloe's as they slowly climbed the stairs.

The remnants of crime scene tape was still stuck to the door. With a shaking hand, Chloe turned the key, and pushed the door open.

The apartment had been cleaned by a team of professionals before they had been allowed back in, and the air was heavy with the smell of bleach and antibacterial spray. Beca had to close her eyes again, waiting for the blood to disappear from the walls and floor. Waiting for Jesse's still breathing and choking body to vanish.

Chloe squeezed her hand.

"Okay?" She asked. Beca nodded and opened her eyes. The room was back to normal.

Aubrey had already been in to pack up all her things. She had offered to do the same for the two girls, but they thought they'd better face it themselves.

They moved from room to room, packing up everything that belonged to them. Beca was relieved to see her mixing equipment had been untouched, and she carefully packed it in a suitcase, wrapped up in her clothes. Chloe had gone quiet as she packed her room. This had been her home for three happy years, and in one night it had been ruined forever. She wiped the tears from her cheeks as she packed away photographs and keepsakes.

"You're allowed to cry," Beca said from the doorway. Chloe gave her a sad smile and sat on the edge of the bed. Beca sat beside her and put an arm around her waist. Chloe put her head on her shoulder and let out a small sob. "I know you have so many happy memories of living her. But I promise that soon we can start making some of our own."

"I know," Chloe said, sniffing. "And I can't wait."

A few hours later, and everything was packed in boxes. They were going to store it here until they could move into their new place next week. As they were about to leave, there was a knock at the door that caused them both to freeze.

Cautiously, Beca approached the door and slid the chain-lock across before opening it.

Jesse's mom was standing there, dressed in black, tear tracks down her face.

"I didn't know if you'd be here," she said, sounding a lot smaller than she had the first time they'd met. "Can I come in?" Beca hesitated. "I'm not going to hurt you, or anything like that." Beca took the chain off and opened the door, stepping aside to let her in.

"Beca, what are you doing?" Chloe asked, rushing forward and pushing the small brunette behind her, the same way she had done the last time. "What do you want?"

"I wanted to apologise. For what I said to you and what I did. I didn't want to believe my only son was capable of that kind of thing," she said. "He was my little boy. I never thought he could do anything like that. But... But I know he did. And I am so sorry."

"What do you want me to say?" Beca asked, her voice quiet but steady. "I'm not sorry for what I did."

"No," she said. "I wouldn't expect you to be. I don't think anyone is sorry he's gone. Not even his father. I just need to know... Was it quick?"

Beca hesitated. "It didn't feel quick," Beca said, deciding on the truth. "But it was probably less than a minute. He looked at me the whole time."

"Did he say anything?" She asked, perhaps hoping her son had shown some kind of repentance in his final moments.

"He asked for help," she said, telling the truth again. "And just before he died, he said something else, but I didn't hear it."

His mother nodded, tears washing away the tracks left by her previous ones.

"I'm sorry again," she said. "Thank you for your time, and I promise not to bother you again." She left.

* * *

The next morning, they got a call from Officer Josie Roberts. Jesse's mother had killed herself in her hotel room, her note explaining that she was unable to live with the burden of what her son had done.

Beca and Chloe didn't say anything for a long time as they digested this.

"Could we have done anything?" Beca asked, eventually.

"No," Chloe replied. "I think she'd already made up her mind what she was going to do when she came to see us."

Beca rested her head in her hands. "Every time you think it's over, something else happens," she said.

"I know," Chloe said. "And I know I've said this before, but it's done now. That was just an unexpected bump."

"Yeah," she said, before making a noise of frustration. "Why can't I stop picturing him?" Her voice was much harsher than it had been. "I can see him lying there, looking at me to help him. Like a pathetic dying animal. And I stood and watched him die. And I didn't feel bad about it. Why won't he go away?"

"He will," she said, slightly taken aback. "You just need time and you need to work through your feelings. You're seeing Dr. Richard's tomorrow, I know she'll be able to help."

"I know," Beca said, sounding calmer. "I know."

"You'll be okay. We both will."


	28. Chapter 28

**A/N: Penultimate chapter!**

**I do not own own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters**

* * *

Beca walked into the lecture hall on the first day of term and felt every pair of eyes in the room land on her. The hall was full with students, most, if not all, of whom had spent the last five months following her disappearance and then her trial.

She could feel the panic rise up in her. She thought she could hear them whispering her name. Whispering Jesse's name. Her hands were shaking as she took another unsteady step into the hall She was on the verge of turning and running out of the room when she felt a hand on the small of her back.

"Okay there B?" Cynthia-Rose asked from behind her. Beca nodded. As she looked around her, she realised no one was staring. No one was whispering. She let out a shaky breath. "Come on, we can get a seat in the back." Beca nodded again, smiling slightly, feeling truly relieved that she had a friend to take this class with. She remembered the relief she felt when Cynthia told her she was switching her major too, and that they'd be in most of the same classes.

As they sat down, a few heads did turn in their direction, and a few students began muttering to each other, but she managed to ignore them this time.

"I should have expected this, I guess," Beca said, sitting down and pulling a notebook from her bag.

"Things will settle down soon," Cynthia said.

Beca and Cynthia went straight from their class to the Bella's rehearsal space.

They were still a month away from auditions, but they still liked to meet up a few times a week. Also, considering they hadn't sang together since Beca had been kidnapped, they were a little rusty.

Chloe was waiting for them there with the rest of the Bellas. She was officially not allowed to compete with them, but Beca had asked her to stick around anyway to help with rehearsals.

"How did it go?" Chloe asked as Beca sat beside her in the circle.

"Okay," Beca said, squeezing her hand. Chloe knew that meant that there was more to the story, but she couldn't, or didn't want to, talk about it now.

She looked over at Stacie who was walking around near the stairs, a smile on her face as she spoke softly into her phone.

"She's talking to Aubrey," Chloe said. "She's coming for a visit soon."

Beca smiled, glad her two friends were still happy. Stacie finished her conversation and made her way back to the group.

"Right," Beca said. "Let's get started, shall we?"

* * *

The next nine months went by in a blur, with Beca feeling more and more like herself every day. She was still seeing Dr. Richard's every week for therapy, and was still on a mild dose of anti-depressants to help with her anxiety. She also still suffered regularly from nightmares, but the flashbacks were becoming less and less frequent. She joked a lot more, went out a lot more, and was genuinely happier and more relaxed.

Chloe had recovered from her encounter with Jesse, but still checked in with Dr. Richard's (at Beca's request) every month.

The one year anniversary of the day she'd been taken by Jesse went past without a comment from either girls, although Chloe thought that Beca had been quieter than usual, and had held her tighter as they slept.

Equally, the day marking one year since she escaped went by without mention. Although Beca thought Chloe had held her tighter as they slept.

They did celebrate their one year anniversary as a couple. Chloe bought Beca a simple silver band for her to wear in place of an engagement ring. On the inside, she had had it engraved with the word 'Titanium', which was not only their song, but, in Chloe's eyes, exactly what Beca was. Unbreakable.

"Do you like it?" Chloe asked, anxiously watching Beca's eyes fill with tears. Beca nodded, unable to form words. She just held her for a long time, thinking about how lucky she was, and how in love she was.

Soon after, Chloe graduated for a second time, and Beca had passed her first year with high grades. Chloe had even managed to already secure a job as a teaching assistant at one of the elementary schools in Barden.

Before they knew it, it was the anniversary of the day Jesse had died.

This time, it didn't go by without comment.

Beca had barely said two words the whole day. She locked herself away in their spare room/office space and worked on mix after mix.

After everything that had happened to her, it was this that stuck with her the most.

The feeling of the gun, heavy in her hands. Oddly cold, yet hot at the same time. The smell of blood that had filled the room soon after.

The deafening silence that followed the gunshots. Only interrupted by Jesse's choking and wheezing sounds.

**"Help me."**

**"No. I want you to die."**

The tear that snaked from the corner of his blinking eyes that refused to look away from her. The voice of Josie Roberts had distracted her, and at the time, she hadn't thought she'd heard Jesse's last words.

But the memory of it had plagued her sleep almost every night since.

_**"This isn't right."**_ He had said, his voice a whisper that shouldn't have carried, but had anyway, lodging itself in her mind. _**"I'm not supposed to die yet."**_

"Becs?" Chloe asked, walking into the room where Beca was mixing.

She had been thinking about it all day too.

Beca saved her work before closing the lid of her laptop.

"Are you okay?" Chloe asked.

Beca shook her head.

She didn't lie about how she was feeling anymore, because she knew it didn't help her. When she was afraid, or sad, or stressed, she told her. Likewise, when she was happy and relaxed, Chloe knew.

"Me neither," Chloe said, holding out her hand for Beca to take. Beca smiled, taking her hand and allowing herself to be lead into the living room, where Chloe lay on the sofa. Beca was lying in the space between her legs, her head on Chloe's chest, her arms wrapped around her waist. Chloe ran her hand up and down her back and arm. "Do you want to talk?"

"No," she said. "Do you?"

"No," Chloe replied. "I just want to lie here and hold you, and forget that he ever existed."

"Yeah," Beca said, closing her eyes contentedly, "me too."

She hoped that this image of Jesse would leave her soon. Dr. Richards had told her that it was natural for it to stick in her head, considering she had killed someone. The idea that she had taken a life was weighing heavily on her and only by talking about it, not ignoring it, would she begin to recover. During every session, Dr. Richards asked her to recount what had happened, each time with a little more detail. She would remind her that she had acted to save herself and Chloe, and that however she was feeling was okay, so she should embrace those feelings, and allow herself to work through them.

"I can hear your head whirring," Chloe said. She had felt Beca begin to tense slightly as they lay in silence, and she knew that she was probably getting lost in her thoughts again.

"I know," Beca said, sighing.

"Just tell me if you want to talk," Chloe said. "Because I know you're thinking about it."

"Are you not thinking about it?" Beca asked, shifting her position slightly.

"Of course," Chloe said. "But there's so much I don't remember, or wasn't awake for. You had to find me like that. You had to watch him kill someone, and then you had to actually kill him. All I have to think about is the moments before he hit me."

"You must have been scared," Beca said, realising that Chloe had never really told her what had happened.

"I was terrified," Chloe said. "But more scared that he was going to take you again. When I wouldn't tell him where you'd gone, I thought he'd just kill me and wait for you." She felt Beca tense again, and with a sinking feeling, she realised she had just let slip what she had never intended on telling Beca. Beca was quiet for a long time. "Becs, I wasn't going to hand you to him."

"I know," Beca said. "I just... The thought of you waiting for him to kill you..."

"I was scared," Chloe said, "but he didn't kill me. And he can't hurt me again. Thanks to you he can't hurt anyone again."


	29. Chapter 29

**A/N: Well, this is it folks, the last chapter. I can't express enough how much your continued love and support has meant to me while I've been writing this, thinking about it has actually given me a lump in my throat. You are without a doubt the most supportive fandom ever, and I love you all.**

**Thank you again, you all keep me going when I feel like I should give up. You're amazing.**

**I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters**

* * *

_**Seven Years Later**_

"Now, I really am very excited about this," the radio DJ said, leaning towards his mic. "Our next guest is the mysterious Beca Mitchell, who you might know better as DJ Titanium. She is giving her first ever radio interview, right here in a few minutes. Since her début hit song 'Red' took the world by storm last year, Beca has kept herself out of the spotlight. Well her second album 'Songs for Alice' is about to drop, and she is here to talk to us about it. Beca Mitchell, welcome to the show."

"Thank you for having me," Beca said, her voice relaxed and friendly, perfectly disguising the nerves that were fluttering in her stomach. She saw Chloe give her a smile from behind the soundproof glass, and she felt a little better.

"The pleasure is all mine," he said. "Now, you have spent most of the last year keeping away from the spotlight. You went by your pseudonym, DJ Titanium, you only gigged in bars and clubs, and you never announced you were going to be there. You never gave interviews, and only communicated to your fans through twitter."

"That's right," Beca said. "I liked having that anonymity. It meant I could carry on having a normal life with my family, without all the pressures of fame."

"So why suddenly come out now? Why release album two under your own name?"

"There were a few reasons," she said, looking to Chloe again, who nodded. "The first being that it was bound to be leaked sooner or later who I was. There were rumours flying around about me, and it was difficult to defend myself while trying to stay anonymous. I also felt like I didn't need to hide anymore. Things got so crazy after 'Red' that I was scared of revealing myself. I didn't want to be some one-hit-wonder, so I built what I thought to be a solid foundation. If the album wasn't a hit, then I could kind of distance myself from it. Which, I know, is a bit of cowardly thing to do. So I decided that my next album would just be me, with nowhere to hide."

"How have people responded to the revelation?"

"They've been really supportive actually. The response I've had has been mostly positive. It's also really hilarious how shocked people have been to find out that this badass DJ Titanium is actually a tiny 26-year-old from Portland," Beca said.

"I wasn't going to mention it, but you are very small," he said, laughing. "So, 'Songs for Alice'. Why that title?"

"It's my daughter's name," Beca said. "I wanted to do something for her. 'Red' was written about my wife, Chloe, so Alice had to be included too."

"How old is your daughter?"

"She's three now," Beca said, smiling. "Chloe got pregnant with her the year after I graduated college, a year after we got married."

"You got married when you were 22? That's young," he said.

"Yeah, but it felt right. We got together when I was 18, and she was 20, and we got engaged not long after. We've been through a lot together, and the thought of being with anyone else is just ridiculous. She's my soul-mate," Beca said, looking back at Chloe again.

"You mentioned some tough times," he said, looking slightly apprehensive. "I know there are certain things you won't talk about, for very understandable reasons, but I can't ignore the elephant in the room."

Beca sighed slightly. "No," she said, "I suppose you can't."

"Not long after you announced your real identity, a story from your past resurfaced."

"That's right. And I won't go into it, but I imagine everyone listening already knows the details. At the time, what happened to me was on every news channel, and in every paper. It was another reason for me to stay anonymous. Even now, when you Google me, it's maybe the third or fourth thing listed," Beca said, playing with the silver band she wore as a wedding ring, twisting it nervously.

"Quite recently you tweeted: '_Everyone already knows what happened. I don't think I need to make an official statement about it. Please stop asking me to._' What was that in response to?"

"I had reporters constantly harassing me to talk about it, which I'm not going to do. I have a wife and a therapist to talk to. My daughter is at the age now where she's starting to pick up on things, and I don't want this to be one of them," Beca said, wishing they could change the topic of conversation. She could tell he wanted to say more. "Okay," she said, "here's the deal. I went through something really really," she had been tempted to say shitty, but caught herself before she did, "horrific when I was an 18-year-old kid. You know what it was. And so do your listeners. I'm not going to talk about it. I understand your curiosity, and I understand that you couldn't ignore it, but I need you to understand that it is something that I won't be discussing."

"I understand completely," he said, looking slightly embarrassed. "And I apologise."

"No problem," Beca said, her easy, relaxed nature coming back.

They talked a little more about the album before they wrapped up the interview, and Beca left the station.

"How did I do?" Beca asked Chloe, as they headed over to Aubrey and Stacie's place to pick up Alice.

"You were great," Chloe said, squeezing her hand. Their lives had taken such a massive turn in the past year. They had moved out to LA as soon as Beca graduated, and they had married not long after. Beca made music and looked after Alice, while Chloe taught at the elementary school close to them. The first time Chloe heard 'Red' she knew it was something special. It was no surprise to her that the rest of the world seemed to love it as much as she did.

"You don't think I came across to harsh?" Beca asked as they walked, ignoring the sound of camera shutters.

"No way," Chloe said. "He knew the rules, he must have been expecting you to react like that. He probably hoped you'd go ape-shit so he'd have a better story."

They reached the Conrad-Posen household and knocked on the door.

"Babe, can you get that?" They heard Stacie call from inside. "It'll take me a year to get off this sofa."

"I got it," Aubrey replied, before opening the door. She smiled when she saw them. "How many times, you two, you don't need to knock, just come in."

"I never really recovered from naked yoga, Aubrey," Chloe said, shuddering.

"I'm hardly going to do naked yoga when I'm babysitting your kid, am I?" Aubrey replied rolling her eyes.

"Frankly, I'm not prepared to risk it," Chloe said, smiling as she saw Beca sit beside their daughter, and help her with her game. She half hugged a heavily pregnant Stacie before sitting beside her on the sofa.

"Coffee?" Aubrey asked.

"Please," Chloe and Beca responded.

"Whatcha doing munchkin?" Beca asked Alice, watching her.

"Alphabet," Alice responded, impatiently sweeping her mane of red hair from her eyes. "Mommy help." Beca took off the little girl's headband, before pushing the hair back, and slipping it back on. She looked down at the game she was playing. It was a wooden board with gaps in the shapes of the letters. Spread out around the board were wooden letters, each with a different object on it, to correspond with the letter.

"This game looks very educational," Beca said, "did Aunt Aubrey give you this?" Alice nodded eagerly. She picked up a letter, and handed it to Beca. "What is it?"

"Duck," she said.

"What letter does duck start with?" Beca asked. Alice thought for a second.

"Dee," she said, smiling proudly.

"That's right," Beca said. "And which one is that?" Alice looked back at the board before pointing to the 'D' shaped hole. "See if it fits," she handed Alice the letter, who pushed it into the whole. "Good job, baby," Beca said, holding out her hand for a high-five, which Alice gave her, giggling.

"Mommy, can we play with Legos now?" Alice whispered, pulling herself up using Beca's shoulder.

"Ugh they are so cute," Stacie said.

"I know, right?" Chloe said, grinning. "And they're all mine."

"Moma's being creepy again," Beca said, giving Chloe a smirk as she sat their daughter on her lap. Alice giggled.

"If our little boy isn't as cute as Alice, I'm sending him back," Stacie said, earning a whack on the leg from Aubrey as she returned from the kitchen, setting a tray of coffee, and juice for Alice, down on the table.

"Mommy, can you send me back?!" Alice asked looking terrified. Beca tried to stifle her laughter.

"Of course not, munchkin," she said. "Aunt Stacie was just being silly."

"Good," Alice said, looking relaxed again as she in the space between Beca's legs, building up her Lego tower, brick by brick.

It was such a simple thing, watching her daughter and wife play together as if nothing else mattered in the world, but it made Chloe want to cry. It made her heart fill with so much love and happiness she thought she'd burst.

Beca looked at her, and she knew she was thinking the same. Feeling the same.

"Where are you, right now?" Stacie asked, nudging her friend in the side. "Earth to Chloe?"

"I'm right where I'm supposed to be," she replied.

**The End**


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